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Boone County residents aim to change wind turbine rules
Credit: By Reuben Jones | WREX | May 1, 2015 | www.wrex.com ~~
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Translate: FROM English | TO English
David Cleverdon has lived in his Boone County farm for 25 years.
But he says if a wind turbine came near his home, he would move.
“It’s a real threat to people. Not to everybody but to substantial portions of the population,” says Boone County resident David Cleverdon.
That’s why he filed an application with the county to change the minimum distance a wind turbine can be located from a home.
The requirement is currently one thousand feet. Cleverdon would like to extend it to half-a-mile.
“We are trying to set the ground rules up front rather than trying to play catchup, because once the turbines are here, the damage is going to start being done,” Cleverdon says.
He says wind turbines have a record of lowering property values and affecting people’s health.
“Sleep deprivation, and all that goes with that, you know you begin to lose your concentration, some people get double vision, some people their ears begin to ring,” Cleverdon says.
But there is some disagreement over just what the health effects are.
The Belvidere-Boone County Planning Department says studies on the health effects can go either way.
That’s why they recommended denying Cleverdon’s application.They want to evaluate each turbine proposal individually.
“Depending on the location of the tower, the height of the tower, there are multiple factors that go into everything which is why we feel it’s best to wait until we actually get the actual data in front of us to make that determination,” says Belvidere-Boone County Planning Department Associate Planner Gina DelRose.
The planning department also says extending the minimum distance would practically eliminate any windmills coming to the county because they say there is not enough land.
And while Cleverdon considers himself a supporter of wind mills, he is continuing his case to keep them far away from Boone County residences.
The Zoning Board of Appeals is currently reviewing Cleverdon’s application. The county board is expected to vote on the application later this year.
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