1 Lyme Letter to CV PB abt FEIS

August 17, 2010
Town of Cape Vincent Planning Board
Town Office Building
1964 NYS Rte. 12E
Cape Vincent, NY 13618
St. Lawrence Windpower FEIS

To: Chairman Richard Edsall and members, Karen Bourcy, Thomas Ingersoll, Andrew Binsley, and George Mingle:
The Lyme Planning Board is an involved agency participating in the SEQRA process for the above captioned project. In spite of our standing, our board was not presented with a copy of the FEIS as an involved agency and consequently we have had to undertake a rushed, review of the FEIS. We understand the FEIS will be submitted to you on August 18 for your acceptance in accordance with your function as Lead Agency for the SEQR process.

In our review of the document titled “FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT, PROPOSED ST. LAWRENCE WINDPOWER PROJECT, TOWNS OF CAPE VINCENT & LYME, JEFFERSON COUNTY, NEW YORK,” we find that, in several important respects, it fails to satisfy the requirements of NYS DEC in an adequate manner and we recommend that it should not, therefore, be accepted by you in your function as Lead Agency.

Some of the many failures to follow the DEC requirements are as follows:
There is no description of the need for and benefits from the proposed development as is required by NYS DEC. This would require extensive discussion and analyses demonstrating by what means the highly variable and unpredictable power generated from the proposed wind facility will materially reduce the use of fossil fuels or the emissions generated by the operation of the electrical grid.
Further, there is no investigation or verification that the transmission of the power to be generated by this project and the adjacent proposed BP wind project can be effectively transmitted to areas of the state requiring such power through the Chaumont sub-station.

The sound study presented is clearly an attempt to subvert the intent of the DEC noise requirements. The background noise levels are grossly overstated and SLW consultant Hessler has chosen to ignore the comments of Cavanaugh Tocci Associates, Dr. Paul Carr, Mr. Clif Schneider and others on this very point. A recent article by Nancy Madsen in the Watertown Daily Times also revealed this shortcoming in the study .

The town of Cape Vincent’s consulting engineers, including an acoustic expert, stands firm in their recommendation that SLW/Acciona's estimate of background noise is elevated. As a consequence, the proposed setbacks between turbines and non-participating properties are far too close. Therefore, on this basis alone, the Planning Board should reject this FEIS and require SLW to comply with the recommendations of the town's engineering consultants, e.g., Bernier Carr Associates and Cavanaugh Tocci Associates.
DEC recommends that noise be permitted to increase not more than 6 dB beyond established background levels. In addition to inflating the background levels, Hessler treats the 6 dB, not as an upper limit to sound increases, but seems to use it as a target design value, which will be actually exceeded under a number of operating conditions. This practice added to the overstatement of the nighttime background noise levels will result in residents being exposed to intrusive and annoying noise levels.
Hessler’s selection of 42 dB as an appropriate sound level for adjacent residences will result in intolerable noise levels for many residences. Measurements of background noise performed locally indicate background sound levels of about 25 dB at night when people need to sleep. If the resultant limit were 6, dB higher it would result in a maximum permitted sound level of 31 dB. This limit should be observed at the property lines of non-participating residents and property owners, not at the residence as SLW proposes. This level is significantly more tolerable than the 42 dB proposed by SLW at (most) residences and therefore will affect the number of turbines and the placement of those turbines.
It is apparent that Hessler/SLW look upon the DEC guidelines not as a way to protect residents from intrusive and annoying sound levels, but simply use it as a means to justify the highest possible design sound levels to increase the number of turbines to be located within the project boundaries.
SLW relies on the widely discredited Hoen report to support its contention that property values will not be affected, while ignoring the simple fact, observed by local real estate brokers, that virtually everything in Cape Vincent is currently for sale and nothing can be sold because of the threat of wind development.
The entire issue of damage to birds and bats by wind turbines needs to be re-evaluated in view of the disturbing statistics that have recently emerged from monitoring the damage done by the turbines on neighboring Wolfe Island.
Lyme’s own wind survey indicated that 80 % of respondents wanted the transmission lines to be buried. This possibility is not mentioned or evaluated in the FEIS even though the bulk of the transmission line will lie in the Town of Lyme.
The mitigation measures (renovation of two community vaults in Three Mile Bay Cemetery and vegetative screening) proposed to compensate the Town of Lyme for the intrusion of the transmission line are meaningless and trivial.
Lastly, it would seem reasonable that if the chief law enforcement office in the state is investigating wind development and municipal officials in Cape Vincent that any progress in the SEQR process should be halted until completion of the AG's investigation and reporting. There may well be findings that will have a profound effect on the outcome of Acciona's project proposal.
These are just a sampling of the inadequacies of the FEIS, which should be rejected on August 18, as failing to meet the intent of the DEC requirements.

For the Town of Lyme Planning Board,
Albert H. Bowers III