LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Lancaster County commissioners have eased the tough setbacks for wind farms that they approved last month.
The Board of Commissioners voted 4-1 Tuesday to approve an amendment that puts the setback at five times the wind turbine’s height to a nonparticipating property owner’s home or two times the height to the property line, whichever is longer.
For a 500-foot-tall (152.4 meters) wind turbine, that would be 2,500 feet (762 meters), which is just less than half a mile (804.7 meters).
Last month the board approved a setback of a mile (1.61 kilometers) after hearing testimony from members of the group Prairie Wind Watchers, who said the distance was necessary to protect their property values and quality of life.
The Lincoln Journal Star reports that Commissioner Rick Vest reversed his vote from last month. He says he heard new information after last month’s meeting that suggested the mile setback might hamper the county’s wind development. He says that wasn’t his intention.
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Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, http://www.journalstar.com
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