Wind turbine lights need an off switch. Here’s your chance to tell the WA Senate | Opinion

The Tri-City Herald Editorial Board
·4 min read
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Scout Clean Energy plans a wind farm on Benton County farm land south of the Tri-Cities along the Horse Heaven Hills ridgeline south of Badger Road.

An important bill that would restrict the constant nighttime blinking of red lights on top of wind turbines is getting a hearing Friday, and the more Tri-Citians who testify the better.

You can either submit a written statement or sign up to speak virtually.

And of course, you also can drive over to Olympia and speak in person to committee members.

That’s what Paul Krupin, a Kennewick scientist and attorney, plans to do.

He is a member of Tri-Cities CARES — Community Action for Responsible Environmental Stewardship. The group is leading the effort opposing a plan by Scout Clean Energy to line the Horse Heaven Hills skyline with wind turbines from Finley to Benton City.

While the struggle against the wind farm proposal continues, Rep. April Connors, R-Kennewick, is doing her best to help mitigate the damage should the state ultimately approve the wind farm proposal.

She is sponsoring ESHB 1173, which would require that wind turbines in Washington state be equipped with Aircraft Detection Lighting Systems (ADLS).

The devices eliminate the need for the non-stop blinking of red lights on the top of wind turbines during the night. Instead, the automatic detection system turns the lights on only when low-flying airplanes are near and then shuts them off after the plane has passed.

In a stunner win, the bill was approved 94-1 by House members last month. Now it is making its way through the Senate.

But Krupin is not taking anything for granted. He told the Tri-City Herald there is no such thing as a slam-dunk in politics.

He said the more public comment on the issue, the better. It will help let legislators know the extent to which Eastern Washington communities are affected by wind turbines pocking the landscape.

While Connors’ bill would definitely apply to future wind turbine projects like the Horse Heaven Hills plan, Krupin said it also will help people who currently have to deal with blinking red lights shining through their windows at night.

In our region, that means wind turbines from the Tri-Cities to Walla Walla would eventually go dark most of the time.

Last month, Richland scientist and energy expert James Conca, told members of the House that those blinking lights are only necessary 2% to 3% of the time.

So why must they be on constantly? This bill is a no-brainer in our book.

Anything that reduces night sky pollution should be embraced.

In urban areas, artificial lights are blamed for obscuring the stars. In rural areas, artificial lights can confuse nocturnal wildlife.

They also can be distracting to drivers if they can be seen from the road.

The proposed Horse Heaven Clean Energy project would be visible at night up to 20 to 30 miles away, according to Krupin.

And more than 100,000 people would live within six miles of the turbines, with the majority of them in city limits. That’s based on an analysis done by Tri-Cities CARES.

If Connors’ bill is approved, Washington would join North and South Dakota, Vermont and New Hampshire in requiring ADLS on wind turbines. And the technology is, of course, approved by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Connors told the Herald that this year Germany began requiring aircraft detection lighting systems for every turbine in the country.

The opposing argument against the ADLS requirement is the cost. But Conca estimated that the lighting systems would cost 0.1% of the total cost of the Horse Heaven Clean Energy Center.

According to an earlier Herald news story, Conca said, “These folks are making tons of money on these projects, most of which goes out of state. So they can certainly do something for the people of this state who are bearing the burden and getting almost none of the benefit.”

We agree.

The hearing Friday, March 17, is scheduled for 8 a.m. with the State Senate Environment, Energy & Technology Committee.

To submit a written testimony or to sign up to testify, go to https://app.leg.wa.gov/csi/Senate and follow the instructions and fill out the form with the “PRO” position if you are in favor of Connors’ bill.