Community discussion continues on Xcel Engery’s proposed solar panel project in St. Croix County
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By Renee Bettendorf
NEW RICHMOND — On Wednesday evening (March 26) more than 150 people attended a panel discussion about the Ten Mile Creek/King Transmission Connection solar energy project being proposed by Xcel Energy. The event was hosted by the Americans for Prosperity (AFP) organization and the St. Croix County Responsible Energy Coalition (SCC-REC).
If approved, the Ten Mile Creek/King Transmission Connection solar energy project would include installing solar panels on 5,000 acres of land, upgrading an existing transmission line or building a new line and connecting the new solar power source to existing infrastructure at a power plant located near Stillwater, MN. It’s estimated that the project would supply enough power for 140,000 homes by 2029.
The panel at the event included St. Croix County board member Ryan Sherly, local farmer/business owner Dave Dalton, Dominic Ventura of AFP, local resident Dan Weatherly and Paul Schecklman from the Wisconsin Veteran Business Alliance. District 28 Assemblyman Rob Kreibich joined the panel late and U.S. Congressman Tom Tiffany was scheduled to appear but did not due to a scheduling conflict.
Mike Grajeda who is the host of the podcast Mike is Always Right was the emcee for the event which took place at 45th Parallel Distillery in New Richmond. Over pizza, beer and cocktails attendees listened to a discussion from the panel about the project and then had the opportunity to ask the panel questions.
Ventura, who is a grassroots engagement director for AFP, started the discussion by telling the crowd that the panel was brought together to examine what would be the best economic decision for St. Croix County in regards to the project.
“There’s a lot of different facets to this issue,” said Ventura.
One facet of the issue is land use and Dalton, a long-time farmer from the Hammond area, spoke about farmers being stewards of the land and maintaining the fertility of the soil. He is concerned about the amount of land that would be used for the project, the type of land and also the future of that land.
According to Excel Energy’s website, the Tenmile Creek part of the project proposes leasing 5,000 acres of land from landowners in a 30,000 to 40,000 acre area in central and eastern St. Croix County for the purpose of installing solar panels and other infrastructure.
“This is St. Croix County’s pristine crop land, it’s not just standard land, it’s some of the best and Excel is taking it,” said Dalton.
On its frequently asked questions webpage, Xcel addresses farmland preservation by stating: “solar projects benefit agriculture and ecosystems by improving soil health, retaining water, nurturing native species and supporting pollinators. Native plants established throughout the site help retain water, preserve topsoil and improve soil health. After the project is decommissioned, the land can be farmed again.”
Dalton does not agree with this statement and said there are many unknowns about what will happen to the land. He also feels uncertain about what the construction of the project will do to the topsoil as far as soil compaction, pulverization and erosion. Additionally, he’s worried about how or if the land could be restored decades down the road and who would be responsible for that.
“We all need to be stewards of this land and we need to work together to prevent this from happening,” said Dalton.
Weatherly, who has a background in law and has lived in the county for about 20 years, spoke about his perspective as a local resident. He said he will likely see major changes in his neighborhood including being in view of the solar panels, buildings, service roads, fencing and substation.
“Many of us are going to have this industrial solar complex dumped in our back yard, right next to our houses,” said Weatherly.
After the event the Tribune Press Reporter contacted Xcel and got a hold of Christine Ouellette, a senior media relations representative for the company. According to Ouellette, buffer zones will be part of the development of the site layout and screening vegetation will be used to minimize impacts to neighboring landowners.
Weatherly touched on several of his concerns about the project some of which were; how a fire at the complex would be dealt with, water pollution resulting from runoff from the panels, stray voltage, exposure to electromagnetic fields and low frequency noise and loss of property value.
In regards to local fire department training, Ouellette had this to say: “We coordinate closely with emergency responders and local officials and if there are additional questions or issues that fire officials have, we’ll work with them before, during and after construction.”
Xcel’s website states that solar panels do not leach contaminants into ground or surface water and no negative health impacts from exposure to electromagnetic fields has ever been proven. It also states that if a customer suspects stray voltage, Xcel will test for it and then work to resolve any issues. As for loss of property value Xcel’s website states that property owners can expect “positive, zero, or negative impacts on property values”.
Weatherly went on to tell the crowd about SCC-REC which is a newly formed non-profit organization with the goal of raising $100,000 to retain legal counsel. With legal counsel SCC-REC could intervene when Xcel starts the application review process with the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (WPSC).
“We want to go there and fight and stop this and shut this down, and if we can’t shut it down, we’re going to argue for concessions,” he said.
Sherly spoke about his perspective from the county board saying that the board’s “hands are tied”. This is because the county can regulate projects that are 100 megawatts or less, anything over that automatically goes to the WPSC. Ten Mile Creek is slated to produce about 650 megawatts of electricity.
“On the county level we are working with the Corporation Council and the rest of our staff to do what we can,” he said.
Sherly said the board has been working on the issue in a few ways. For one, they have had some discussions with Xcel about a possible development agreement.
They also are setting up a special meeting for all the local municipalities to meet with the county board so they can try to work together and see what they can do jointly. Additionally they have revised the ordinance that governs smaller solar and wind projects.
“Just know that we are doing everything we possibly can,” said Sherly.
Schecklman, who filled in due to Tiffany’s scheduling conflict, said that while he is not a local resident he is a Ph.D. candidate focusing on energy security and diplomacy within international security.
“I look at this stuff all the time,” he said of the project.
A big concern he has is the amount of land that would be used for the project and how that land could be utilized in other ways. According to Schecklman, a natural gas plant could be built on just 16 acres of land and would be up and running faster and provide more reliable electricity at a cheaper cost.
Chairman of the town of Erin Prairie, John Van Dyk was in the audience and offered some comments to the attendees and panel. Erin Prairie is the main area Xcel is looking at for the project. Van Dyk said that his town is attractive for the project because it has a lot of flat land.
He also said that Wisconsin state senator Rob Stafsholt told one of his town supervisors that the project is a done deal. Van Dyk said he called Stafsholt’s office to discuss the project and no one got back to him. He also has had problems getting Xcel to answer questions, which he finds disconcerting. Especially when he was trying to find information on how to prepare the fire department.
“There’s just a lot of Xcel questions we need to have answered,” said Van Dyk.
Questions and Answers
About 20 people from the audience asked the panel questions. Many topics were covered including: what if Xcel contractors go bankrupt, will Xcel be able to provide power if the Ten Mile Creek project does not get approved, when will a detailed map of the the project be available, will the DNR approve the project, what about eminent domain, is there a list of county board members that are in favor of the project, where does Stafsholt stand on this issue and has he leased any of his land for the project?
While the panelists could offer their theories about what will happen with the Ten Mile Creek/King Transmission Connection project, because it’s still in the planning phase, many of the audience’s questions could not be answered.
However, a few questions could be answered.
Paul Adams, who is on the St. Croix County board for district six and told the crowd that he is opposed to the Ten Mile Creek project, asked the panel how local residents could impact the WPSC.
Schecklman said that the WPSC will take public comments and since they have the ultimate decision rights over what gets approved, the more comments the better. He went on to say that the WPSC is a group of people that are appointed by the governor. So another way to impact them is to vote for a governor that you feel will appoint members to the WPSC that align with your values.
“To be effective at the WPSC public comments and public testimony are great, everybody should make an effort to submit public comments,” agreed Weatherly.
Weatherly went on to say that intervening at the WPSC can also be done by having legal counsel so that evidence can be introduced into the record, experts and witnesses can be cross examined and evidence can be challenged. Additionally having legal counsel will allow the attendance of technical hearings which the general public are not allowed to attend.
“It’s a legal battle and to fight a legal battle we need lawyers,” he said.
Another audience member asked about the timeline for resisting the project. Sherly said the board has been in communication with Xcel and has learned that they are looking to submit their application to the WPSC in July or August. Sixty days prior to the submission of the application, Xcel will release their map of the project which will give everybody a better idea of the scope.
Roughly what percentage of the St. Croix county board is in favor of the Ten Mile Creek project was another question asked. Sherly estimated that 11 out of the 19 board members are opposed.
Kreibich, who represents New Richmond and surrounding areas, got to the event about 15 minutes before it ended just in time to answer a question from an audience member about why Xcel waited so long to inform the local residents of the project.
“Xcel has admitted that they blew it,” said Kreibich.
He said that Xcel has had a number of meetings recently at local town boards including Baldwin, Hammond and Erin Prairie. Kreibich also said that he’s been told that a lot of people support the project, but he has not met anybody who does.
