May 2004 Newsletter

Lenore ranchers are touting the power of wind

Monday, April 26, 2004
By Laura Zuckerman, Idaho Falls Post Register

A group of ranchers in Leadore, a small community in the Lemhi River Valley, believes the answer to economic development is blowing in the wind.

More than 30 ranchers have tentatively agreed to install wind turbines on their land if a plan by an Idaho promoter to generate wind energy there comes through.

Lemhi County commissioners have already signed a letter supporting the "green" power proposal by Warren Chapman, head of Capital Enterprises in Twin Falls, and half a dozen devices have been erected to measure wind speed in the Leadore area.

Commissioner Rick Snyder said the project would be a windfall for the area, which was hit especially hard when the heyday of mining and logging ended.

"I support anything that brings jobs to Leadore and prosperity to residents of the county," said Snyder, one of the ranchers who OK'd placement of wind-measuring equipment on his property.

But there are many steps to go before the proposal can become a reality, including the collection of a year's worth of data on wind speeds and a feasibility study. The area would have to generate an annual average wind speed of more than 9 mph to sustain small-scale wind turbines, according to the American Wind Energy Association.

The local push follows on the heels of Gov. Dirk Kempthorne's veto of two bills that would have offered incentives to wind energy developers and the expiration in December of a federal tax-credit program. It also coincides with efforts elsewhere in the state to establish wind farms.

"We'd just like to have development that would lead to greater tax generation," Snyder said.

Although leasing arrangements vary, a landowner can be paid about $3,000 a year for hosting a single turbine, according to literature from the wind energy trade group. Snyder estimates establishing a wind farm in Leadore could generate $300 million, including one-time construction costs.

The prospect of jobs and income would be a boon to a rural community whose population was 87 in 2002 and whose median age is about 45.

But Snyder cautioned the plan still has hurdles to clear, including efforts by Chapman to seek government grants and investors to bankroll the operation.

"We don't look for anything to be up and running for at least three years, even if everything goes well," he said.

Efforts to reach Chapman for comment were unsuccessful.

Documents from the Idaho Department of Finance show the state sued Chapman and Capital Enterprises in 1994 over solicitation of financial backers in a variety of investment schemes.

Chapman and the company were accused of offering securities without being registered and of engaging in fraudulent practices, records show. The case was settled in 1995 when Chapman and Capital Enterprises agreed to abide by a court-ordered injunction against future violations of the state's securities laws. In consenting to the judgment, Chapman and Capital Enterprises neither admitted nor denied the state's allegations.