Tour of High Sheldon wind farm showed many benefits of project in Wyoming County

Editor:

I attended the High Sheldon wind farm tour on April 29 courtesy of Apex. Many thanks to them for sponsoring this event.

The tour was highly informative. What I came away with is the pride this town has that they made the good decision to build the turbines.In High Sheldon, they pay no property taxes, have improved roads and new access roads, help for the town and schools, and many other perks that have improved lives since 2009.

Representatives of the town said a few anti’s remain staunchly against them, but most of the residents are OK with the turbines now, even thanking the town council for bringing them in. We asked if there were any reports of health concerns and were told “no.” We asked about property values and were told they have gone up, not down.

For several years they kept a count of bird deaths and the number was low, and no raptors had died. And some said they hardly notice the turbines anymore.

Groups like Clear Skies have been spreading a lot of misinformation about turbines, but when you see the truth for yourself, it’s pretty clear that the towns wise enough to let them in have not been sorry. Every town works out a different deal, but Barre residents could see some great benefits and it would be foolish to let this opportunity pass us by. It’s time to see the truth and stop fearing the wind!

Chris Loss
Barre