Umatilla County
Land Use Planning
Wind Energy
Most Popular
Contact Information
Phone 541-278-6252
Email:
planning@co.umatilla.or.us
Planning Department
216 SE 4th Street Pendleton, OR
97801
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Location
Umatilla County Courthouse
216 SE Fourth Street
Pendleton, Or 97801
Info: 541-276-7111
Court s:541-278-0341
The Courthouse is open 8 am. to 5 pm. Mon. through Fri.
Brief History on Wind Energy
Wind has been around a long time! Since ancient times, people
have harnessed the winds energy. Over
5,000 years ago, the ancient Egyptians used wind to sail ships on the
Nile River. Later, people built windmills to grind wheat and other
grains. The earliest known windmills were in Persia (Iran). These early
windmills looked like large paddle wheels. Centuries later, the people
of Holland improved the basic design of the windmill. They gave it
propeller-type blades, still made with sails. Holland is famous for its
windmills.
American colonists used windmills to grind wheat and corn, to pump water, and to cut wood at sawmills. As late as the 1920s, Americans used small windmills to generate electricity in rural areas without electric service. When power lines began to transport electricity to rural areas in the 1930s, local windmills were used less and less, though they can still be seen on some Western ranches.
The oil shortages of the 1970s changed the energy picture for the country and the world. It created an interest in alternative energy sources, paving the way for the re-entry of the windmill to generate electricity. In the early 1980s wind energy really took off in California, partly because of state policies that encouraged renewable energy sources. Support for wind development has since spread to other states, but California still produces more than twice as much wind energy as any other state.
Like old fashioned windmills, today's wind machines use blades to collect the winds kinetic energy. Windmills work because they slow down the speed of the wind. The wind flows over the airfoil shaped blades causing lift, like the effect on airplane wings, causing them to turn. The blades are connected to a drive shaft that turns an electric generator to produce electricity.
With the new wind machines, there is still the problem of what to do
when the wind isn't blowing. At those times, other types of power
plants must be used to make electricity.
Amendment Process to the County Wind Siting Standards
DRAFT
Amendments to UCDC 152.616 (HHH) dealing
Commercial Wind Power Generating Facility Siting Standards.
Over the past several months, planning staff and two Planning
Commission members have reviewed the county ordinance and drafted
changes to the commercial wind siting standards found in UCDC Section
152.616 (HHH). Planning Commissioner Clinton Reeder
and Planning Commissioner Rick Colgan have put hours of research into
this effort.
The general timeline for this ordinance update is to accept comments
on this DRAFT, assemble the comments, then share the comments with the
Planning Commission sometime late summer or early Fall, and finally to
move forward with the formal legislative Ordinance Amendment process in
the Fall. Notice of the Hearing will be posted,
published and will comply with notification requirements.
Please stay tuned to our website to monitor progress.
We encourage you to provide specific comments about the draft language
rather than to share general observations. Specific comments are
most helpful to the Planning Commission. If you make only general
or editorial comments, we may or may not be able to fully address your
concerns. So please share specific language that you would like
in the ordinance.
How to Comment
To submit comments send an email to Tamra Mabbott, County
Planning Director - tamra@umatillacounty.net
or send written comments to the Umatilla County Courthouse, Department
of Land Use Planning, 216 SE 4th ST, Pendleton, OR 97801.
Planning Commission Work Sessions on Wind Energy
The December 17, 2009 Planning Commission Work Session deals with
Wind and the standards for approving wind projects in Umatilla
County. Below are the applicable materials:
October 22,
2009 Planning Commission Work Session Agenda (#7)
AOC Wind Energy Task Force Final Draft
Guidelines, November 2, 2009
Wind Energy Impacts - Summary of Work
Session issues
Oregon
Columbia Plateau Energy on Wind Energy Siting and Permitting Guidelines
September 29, 2008
Presentations given at the October 22, 2009 PC Work Session are in
PDF format:
Wind
Power Development Fish Concerns 10-09 by Gary James, CTUIR.
Wind Power Siting Considerations 10-22-09 by UBWC
Umatilla
County Wind Power - Wildlife Considerations, ODFW
Planning Commission Work Session, Thursday February 25, 2010 at 6:30 PM to be held at the Umatilla County Justice Center, Media Room, 4700 Pioneer Place, Pendleton, Oregon 97801. The following are the items from the Planning Commission packet for your review.
Planning
Commission Work Session Agenda 2-25-10
Summary of Measure 49 properties in Umatilla County
Review and Discussion of HB 2229
County Wind Projects, Approval Criteria and Maps
Umatilla County has many existing wind projects that have been
developed over the past 10 + years. with many more in the wings.
The approval process for wind energy projects and associated
transmission lines is outlined in the materials below.
- Umatilla County Development Code, 152.616 (HHH), Wind Energy Facility criteria of approval for a conditional use permit.
- Wind Facility Siting
Check Sheet for Umatilla County. A draft copy of the County
Planning Commission check list for reviewing wind projects.
- Utility Facility
information. The regulations governing utility facilities -
power plants, transmission lines and service line approval criteria.
- Transmission Lines Checklist. A draft handout for the County Planning Commission when reviewing utility facilities necessary for public service.
Wind Energy Map (Revision: 5-18-10) showing current wind projects, met towers and other features of Umatilla County, Oregon.
