Permitting Small Wind
Turbines:
A Handbook
Learning from
the California Experience
To order printed copies of the handbook,
contact:
California Energy Commission, 916-654-4058
renewable@energy.state.ca.us
Also available online in pdf
format.
The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) and the California
Energy Commission released this comprehensive guide for small
wind turbine owners and local officials seeking to understand
and improve permitting regulations affecting small wind energy
systems. The handbook explains in detail how California’s
groundbreaking state law (Assembly Bill 1207) establishing permitting
standards for small wind energy systems applies at local levels.
The guide also directs turbine owners to special state incentives
that bring down the costs of small-scale renewable energy installations.
The handbook is a valuable resource for
counties and residents outside California, providing up-to-date
information to address the most common issues raised in response
to small wind turbine installations, including visual impacts,
acoustics, concern for wildlife, and property values. It concludes
with a model small wind zoning ordinance AWEA recommends all counties
across the country adopt, and provides recommendations for best
practices with a list of “Do’s and Don’ts”
for counties reviewing small wind permit applications.
Small wind turbine owners have often faced
daunting tasks in sorting through an array of siting considerations
and confusing regulations, having to seek out various authorities
for information. AWEA and the Energy Commission hope that this
handbook will help turbine owners and planning officials integrate
small wind energy systems into communities across the nation.
As the recent blackouts in the Northeast make clear, distributed
generation solutions are needed to help ease congestion on transmission
grids.
“This handbook fills a long-standing
need for information about small wind turbines and how local agencies
make sure prospective turbine owners are treated fairly in obtaining
permits for their machines. The California Energy Commission deserves
a lot of credit for taking the initiative to make it happen,”
comments AWEA Deputy Executive Director Tom Gray.
The landmark handbook is built on lessons
learned in a state that has made significant efforts to promote
small wind turbine development. It uses specific case studies
and county ordinances to illustrate the progress that has been
made, highlight personal experiences, and recommend solutions
that could simplify permitting processes in the future.
Noteworthy sections include:
- A concise review of the most common
issues neighbors raise about small wind turbines, with documented
facts that refute the myths, including web links to crucial
reference publications;
- A step-by-step checklist for obtaining
a permit for a small wind energy system in California;
- Explanation of permitting ordinances
for small wind systems in select California counties;
- Descriptions of policies that have
proven both productive and counterproductive for small wind
development; and
- An extensive reference section that
includes contact information and links for county officials,
state programs that offer incentives for small wind turbines,
wind maps and other resources, turbine dealers and manufacturers,
and advocacy groups that promote residential energy systems.
As part of the project, AWEA prepared a
ranking of windy acreage by county and zip code based on the new
wind maps developed by the California Energy Commission. “Permitting
Small Wind Turbines” was written by AWEA’s Small Wind
Advocate Team, in cooperation with Northwest Sustainable Energy
for Economic Development (NW SEED).
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