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Ayobami Onigbinde

1. Project description and goals

a. Scope of this project study

b. Methodology and work flow process

2. Description of the project site and area

a. Location, maps, basic description of project area

3. Met tower(s) description

a. Location, instruments and data

4. Wind data and climate analysis

a. Quality control process and analysis

b. Wind climate and wind data analysis

5. Wind flow and resource modeling, wind maps

a. Flow model and input data

b. Results and wind maps

6. Site assessment and GIS analysis

a. Setbacks and other considerations

b. Setback matrix

c. Setback constraints/site assessment result map

7. Description of project wind turbines

a. Technology, specifications, class and cost


8. Layout design and micro siting

a. Final layout and design with selected WTG

9. Site suitability analysis

10. Wind farm estimated productions analysis

a. Preliminary estimated AEP calculations, compare WTGs


b. Modeled AEP calculations on final layout, compare WTGs

11. Project economics

a. Financial model and input data

b. Debt – equity, Taxes and abatements

c. “Pro forma” with and without incentives (PTC, etc)

12. Environmental analysis and biological impacts

a. Fatal flaw analysis

b. Noise, shadow flickering, visibility, safety, radar, telecommunication

c. Biological impact: Birds, bats, other wide life and vegetation impact
and mitigation

d. Water resource and soil erosion

e. Public health and safety considerations

f. Ground transportation and traffic

g. Solid and hazardous wastes

h. Air quality and climate impacts

i. Socioeconomics and land value impact

j. Archaeological and cultural resources

13. Grid interconnection study (transmission lines, substation and collection


system)

a. Capacity, voltage and ECC analysis

b. Loads, system protection and conditions

c. Location, distance and design


14. Permitting

a. Federal

b. State

c. Local
d. Land use and building permits

15. Land agreements, land owners considerations

a. Terms, rights and compensations

b. Royalty, indemnification and reclamation provisions

c. Public outreach

16. Construction

a. Collection lines, service roads, logistics

b. Contracting and building site

17. Post construction monitoring and O&M

18. Project lifetime, decommissioning and remediation

19. Conclusion and SWOT analysis

20. Appendix

21. Cited page

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DEEZNUTZ WINDFARM
05/02/2017
AYOBAMI ONIGBINDE

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Project Description and Goal
Scope of this Project
Purpose of this project is to put 10-wind turbines and generate the most power available so the
resident can get the lowest and affordable cost of energy.
The first major step in a wind farm is to collect data such as wind direction and wind speed from
the project site. This data was collected at a different height. In this project, wind speed data was
collected from height 10m, 30 m, and 60 m height while wind direction data was collected from
height 30m and 60 m. Wind vane was used to collect data for wind direction while 3-cup
anemometer was used to collect data for wind speed. The data was saved on two different excel
sheets which were later transferred to windowgrapher. Windowgrapher is software that analyzes
wind resources data measure by met tower, SoDAR and LiDAR. The data collected by the wind
vane and 3- cup anemometer contained few inaccurate data points. To get an accurate data from
windowgrapher, flag rules were applied. The importance of flag rules is to take out every invalid
data that does not fit in to the project. After flagging was done, windowgrapher was able to
show the data with four graphs namely vertical wind shear, Diurnal wind speed, monthly mean
wind speed and wind frequency rose. After this, wind data from windographer was transported to
wasp (Wind Atlas Software Package), which can be used for wind resource assessment, siting
and energy yield calculation for wind turbine and wind farm. This software also helps to
calculate wind flow in the presence of topography, obstacles and surface roughness.
Purpose of tier two is to determine which wind turbine among the selected (3 turbines) would be
good for the project based on annual electricity production through WASP and also where on the
site would be good for the placement of turbines through Arcgis. Before picking a turbine for the
project, one has to figure the area that is good for turbines placement within the project area. One
can only determine that on Arcgis through the process called buffer. After locating all the
obstacles such as houses, building, forests, roads, transmission lines, streams and rivers within
the project site on google map, the google map file was saved and later transferred to Arcgis for
buffer to determine where and where not to place turbines within the project site. To determine
how much electricity each turbine would produce annually, some data such as wind speed, power
and Ct curve at hub height of 80m for each turbine was loaded on wasp through turbine editor,
the file was later saved on excel which was later uploaded back to wasp through wind turbine
generator. After that calculation was done for each, summary and statistics table for each turbine
was determined
The purpose of tier 3 is to place the turbines on the site, calculate losses and pick the turbine a
better AEP , capacity factor and wake loss less than 3.1%. 25 GE 2.75 were placed
perpendicular to the area with predominant wind speed on the site. They are 5 strings and each
string has 5 turbines on it. Distance between each turbine was measure by the ruler tool on
Google earth. Also, the best conductor for both underground and overhead were calculated by
comparing the rated power of the turbines to the ECC power. On wasp, the distance between
each turbine on the same string is 14 rotor diameter while distance between strings is 30m Three

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Noise ring buffer (80db,60db and 50db) was done each turbine. This help to measure of sound
level from the ground to the maximum tip height.

Description of site

Horse is an unincorporated community in western Laramie County,


Wyoming. It lies between horse creek to the north, and the south fork
of horse creek to the south, along WYO 211 northwest of the city of
Cheyenne, the county seat of Laramie County. Horse creek has
elevation of 6,506 ft and total population of 39.

Fig 1: United State Map


Location

Horse creek only has two highways, WYO 211


(Horse Creek road)- north – south route running
to Cheyenne, and Chugwater to the northeast.
County road 288 runs west from horse creek to
Laramie. These two highways are useful for easy
movement of turbines during construction stage.
There is a railroad that cut through highway 288.
The highest and lowest recorded temperature for
horse creek is 95 deg Fahrenheit and (-30) degrees
Fahrenheit respectively.


Fig 2: Map of Horse Creek (Wyoming)

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Met Tower Description
Location
To get the suitable place to put the tower, the area of the project, which is 20 km by 20 km, was
divided into 2 and the met tower was placed a little below the center point.
Instruments
To get some data from the project site, a tubular met tower was used. This Tubular boom was
placed 45 degrees from wind direction and 90 degrees from each other. Each height has 2 booms,
2 wind speed censor with anemometer placed on them because of tower shadow effect. Also,
there is a thermometer at 10m height. There are 2 wind vanes at 30m and 60m height
Data
Every data collected for 23 months is stored in a data logger. The wind sensors are attached to a
computer to store the data. Once the data is transferred to wingographer, windowgrapher will
convert it fom Hz to M/s. The data logger collects wind average wind speed, maximum and
minimum wind speed and standard deviation over 10 minutes for each anemometer. For wind
vane, the data logger collects average temperature for thermometer on 10m-height and wind
direction for 30m and 60m height over for 10 minutes.

Wind Data and Climate Analysis


Quality Control Process and Analysis

After the data was transferred to windographer, the next


thing in line is flagging to get rid of every unwanted
and unrealistic data. Before unflagged, there were a
lot of invalid data while comparing the wind speed of
channel A 60m wind speed and channel B 60m wind
speed. The long line on the graph represents valid data
while the irregular line underneath it represents invalid
data. To get rid of the unwanted data, flagging by rules
has to be done. Three flagging namely: invalid
flagging, which was done for every sensor to determine
how many invalid data the sensor recorded. After that,
icing flag and shadowing flag were done

Fig 3: Before Flagging


After the flagging has been done, vertical interpolation was done at 80m height to estimate wind
production compare to a turbine.
Data Recovery

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After all the flags were taken off, it’s advisable to check data recovery rate. This has to be done
in order to confirm that too much data was not flagged. On height 30m, 10m and 60m were 2
sensors each. Out of the total possible value for 10m heights, which in this case is 197,280, 197,
120 was valid with data recover percentage of 99.919%. For 30m height, possible value:
197,280, valid data point of 197,125 and percentage recovery of 99.921%. For 60m height,
possible value: 197,280, valid data point: 181,969 and percentage recovery: 92.239 all the data
recovery rate percentage is fine because none of them is below 85 %.
Data recovery
Height Data Valid Possible Data
Recovery
# (m) Columns Data Points Data Points Rate (%)
1 10 2 197,120 197,280 99.919
2 30 2 197,125 197,280 99.921
3 60 2 181,969 197,280 92.239
Table 1: Data Recovery Table
Vertical Wind Shear Profile
Wind Shear refers to the change in wind speed with height. Power Law and Log Law are used to
calculate wind speed at higher altitudes, as wind speed increases with height .This helps to
determine and calculate wind speed at different altitude.
Even after flagging, there is still a gap between power law fit and log law fit; this is due to
mechanical failure of the sensor.
Wind Distribution Analysis
To determine what kind of turbine would be good for this project, data has to be synthesized on
windowgrapher by using power law to calculate data at the higher altitude. For this project, data
was synthesized at hub height of 80m. The mean speed is determined to be between 8.31 m/s and
8.45 m/s. Also, the power density is estimated to be between 578W/m^2 and 661.6W/m^2

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Weibull curve is mostly used to
model distribution of wind speeds.
Weibull k specifies the shape of
the Weibull distribution. Weibull
c specifies the shape of the curve.
The histogram help in determine
which turbine is good for the
project. The histogram shows
different algorithms that calculate
the area under the curve of the
weibull curve. On the Y axis is the
frequency and X axis is the
average wind speed


Fig 4: Wind Speed Frequency Distribution at 60m

Turbulence Analysis
Turbulence analysis help to determine what class and grade of turbine would be suitable for the
project based on mean speed and also to determine turbulence intensity per sensor. Even though
IEC turbulence gives 2 classes (B and C), but the class close to the hub height would be the best
for the project, which is class C. Turbulence intensity is high because of roughness, turbulence,
interference at low height (10m).
Monthly Mean Wind Speed
This helps determine average wind speed for 12 months for every wind speed height at a
different height. This provides better estimate of long term mean wind speed because it avoids
seasonal biases.
Diurnal Wind Speed Profile
This shows average wind speed hourly for every day. This helps to know what time of the day
will produce the most wind. For installation of wind turbines, it is important to consider that if
the mean wind speed is less than 4 m/s, the wind potential is considered as poor, if it is 4 – 5.4
(m/s), wind potential is considered as marginal, if the mean wind speed is ranged between 5.4 –
6.7 (m/s), wind potential is considered as good to very good and for the wind speeds more than
6.7 m/s, the wind potential is considered as outstanding

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. According to the diurnal wind speed
profile, the highest wind speed for height
10 meters and 30 meters is shown to be
approximately 6.1 m/s and this occur by 12
noon. For height 60 meter, the wind speed
begins to drop from 8.5 m/s to 7 m/s by 12
noon, and rises back at around 8.7 m/s at
18 hours of the day


Fig 5: Diurnal Wind Speed Profile
Wind Frequency Rose
The frequency wind rose helps to visualize wind pattern of the project

This shows where most of the wind comes


from. From the graph below, it’s know that
large portion of the data is represented at 270
degrees. To set up a wind farm, it’s advisable to
know where most of the wind comes from so
that structure of where the turbines are located
can be optimized.

Fig 6: Wind Frequency Rose

Wind Flow and Resources Modeling, Wind Maps


Flow Model and Input Data
After the flagging has been done in windowgrapher, 60m wind speed data for sensor A and B
was transported to WASP so as to consider topography, obstacles and roughness. After that, the
vector map, which is also a contour map, was uploaded to WASP. The contour map has 10m
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resolution, which means the map will have contour for every 10m. After that, generalized wind
climate was done. The purpose of this is to apply the same climate condition to the whole vector
map. After that, resource grid was done. The purpose of this is to run calculation at different
height. Resource grid was run at 250m resolutions which means it calculates for every ¼ of
square kilometer.
Result and Wind Map

The image represents the power density in the wind. The yellow
dot by the square represent the met tower. The square in the top
right corner of the image represents the area where the wind
farm would be at that is, the prospect area for the wind farm.
The red is where there is much power as it’s shown on the scale
in the bottom right corner. The area with green color has the
highest wind speed. Note: Mean wind speed is same thing as
power density that why it’s not included in this report. The
square shape on the right hand corner represents the area
interested in building the wind farm.
After the roughness on the project site was calculated, below is
the updated image of the power density for the project site.

Fig 7: Power Density

The red zone is known to be the area with the high amount of wind.
The power density increased from 1678 W/m^2 to 10154 W/m^2
after surface roughness was calculated. On the graph are 5 turbines
placed at the most optimal place according to the result from RIX and
power density

Fig 8: Updated Power Density

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Fig 9: Roughness Index Fig 13: RIX Updated
The image (fig 12) represents shows the roughness index of the prospect area for the project. The
scale in the bottom right corner explains how much error can be expected for each color region
in percentage. The grey dot in the middle represents the met tower. Small percentage error can
lead to a very large loss of money. 10.3% is the highest percentage error before the wind turbines
(5) were placed at the prospect area. Fig 13, shows updated index roughness after roughness of
the prospect area has been calculated. According to the scale in the bottom right corner of the
image, the roughness percentage index increased from 10.3% to 19.5%

Roughness Classes
The project site has a lot of trees, houses, transmission lines, roads, buildings and a stream. The
only features presented in the interested area for the wind farm project are trees. In building a
wind farm, one has to put surface roughness into consideration because the more roughness at
the project site, the higher the surface friction and that reduces wind. On wasp editor, only trees
were presented at the project site. 0.0300m was used for external roughness while 0.200m was
used for internal roughness.
Obstacles

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Obstacles to the wind such as buildings, trees, rock formations
etc. that are 1800m radius from the met tower. Why 1800m?
Because it has to be 30 times the height of the met tower.
Obstacles can decrease wind speeds significantly. Obstacles
will decrease the wind speed downstream. The decrease in
wind speed depends on the porosity of the obstacle, that is how
‘‘open’’ the obstacle is. Porosity is defined as how much air
can pass through an object. Buildings, barns and house are
solid so they have zero porosity. Trees are less porous.

Fig 10: Obstacles

Setback info
Setbacks
In setting up a wind farm, a lot of factors such as setbacks, types of setbacks and setbacks
distance. Setbacks help determine where turbine can or cannot be placed at the project site. All
the topographies included on the project area that required buffers were all mapped and
accounted for as well as other features such as houses and roads. The setback was done on QGIS.
Types
For this project, only house and roads are presented in the area to be developed. Buffer of
0.004m was put around the houses while 0.00239m (120% of tip height of 195m) was put around
the roads.
Distance
It is advisable to carry out set back while building a wind farm because it helps determine where
to put wind turbine without no problem and also predicts the right distance between turbines in
case one of the blades falls of the turbine.

Turbine Technology

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The 2.75-120 is optionally available with
different tower technologies, hub heights
between 85 and 139 m as well as an
energy storage system.
The 2.75-120 builds upon the previous
model 2.5-120, which GE introduced in
February 2013. Like the 2.5 MW
system, the 2.75 MW model also utilizes
the capabilities of the Industrial Internet.
The wind turbine analyses tens of
thousands of data points per second to
increase the energy output of wind farms
increase maintenance productivity as
well as open up new revenue
Fig 11: Power Curve opportunities for clients.

The 2.75-120 is available with a steel, hybrid or 'Space Frame'
tower. In addition, the system provides short-term and long-term energy storage capabilities. The
option for short-term storage is integrated directly into the system; the long-term storage option
is centrally controlled for the entire wind farm

Full Final Layout

For this project, 25 turbines with power rated of 2.75 would be needed. There are five strings for
this project while each string has five turbines. On wasp, distance of 14 meters was used between
turbines on same string while 30 meters was uses between the strings. At 34.5 kV, the first two
turbines were linked together with 4/0 underground conductor while the last 3 turbines and
overhead were linked together with 1000 underground conductor. From the overhead to the
substation was a 336 overhead insulator. The conductors were selected by matching the power of
the turbines with their ECC rated power. The current from each turbine was determined by using
the following formula. (Power/3)/(34.5V/ square root of 3). Also, the loss was determined by
using the following formula. (Current^2*resistance* length in miles *3). “3” was used because
they are in 3 phases.

Site Suitability
According to turbulence analysis, class 3C was suggested for this project but class 3A or 3B can
also work but are more expensive. A is consider as the highest in term of turbulence intensity
while C is the least. I has the highest average speed and III has the least. The area selected for the
development of the wind farm is very good because it has a very high mean wind speed between
8.31 m/s and 8.45 m/s.

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AEP Result
AEP is the amount of electricity generated annually by each turbine. After loading wind speed,
power and Ct data for each turbine in wind turbine generator on Wasp (GE 2.75 – 120, Enercon
126 and V-110) at the hub height of 80m, below are the pictures of AEP result for each turbine

Fig 12: Statistics for Enercon 126

Fig 13: Site List for Enercon 126

Fig 14: Statistics for GE 2.75- 120

Fig 15: Site List for GE 2.75 – 120

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Fig 16: Statistics for V-110 2.0 MW

Fig 17: Site List for v-110

Project Economic
Financial Model Input
According to the study carried out by Deeznuts financial firm, the installed cost per MW for this
project is somewhere around while the total project cost for 68.75MW will be around
$123,750,000. To persuade and convince investors to invest on this, 13% is set aside for target
equity return. For this project, price per MWh is $47 with 2% escalation rate annually. Since the
construction of the project starts in September, $18.20 is a reasonable PTC value. PTC is an
inflation adjusted per kilowatt-hour tax credit for electricity generated which normally expires at
the 10th year of the life of the project. For REC, $2.50 is a reasonable price. REC is certificates
are proof that energy has been generated from renewable sources such as solar or wind power.
The rec sale for each year was determined by multiplying the rec sale price with annum energy
produced.
This project is being financed 40% equity and 60% debt. The loan of $74,250,000 needs to be
paid off with 10 years at the rate of 4% annually. To determine the annual amount for the loan,
PMT function on excel was used The project aims to pay 5% in the first year, 10% the second
year, 20% the third year, 40% the 4th year, 60% the 5th year, 80% the 6th year, 90% for the 7th
year and 100% the 8th year. The abate tax only applies to the 50% of the total cost of the project,
the other half of the total cost is from labor that is why it cannot be taxed. To determine the
depreciation value of this project, linear depreciation method was used. Linear depreciation
refers to the amount of decrease in the book value of an asset, and is frequently used for
accounting and tax purposes. Weight average capital cost was determined (% debt* interest

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rate)+(% equity *target equity return). The present value of this project was calculated by using
the NPV function on excel and the value came out to be $18,474,2771. Annual cash flow was
calculated by deducting expenses from revenue. Goal seek function was used to determine the
minimum energy price which came out to be $46.28. Goal seek is a function on excel that allows
one to see how one data item in a formula impacts another.

AEP Comparisons
From the site list diagram for each turbine, it’s very obvious that Enercon 126 would be great for
this project in terms of power produced annually. Enercon 126 has a highest net AEP of 31.319
GWh and lowest of 27.685 GWh compare to V-110 (highest: 12.384 GWh, lowest 11.783
GWh), GE 2.75 (highest: 16.620 GWh, lowest 15.508 GWh). Percentage losses are very high in
Enercon 126 but that can be fixed by spacing out the turbines so that each turbine can get enough
wind. After further research, using enercon 126 for this project is very unrealistic. The reason
being, it’s too big and heavy to be used for onshore wind project. Its rated power is given as
7500Kw according to Google. It’s advisable to use a turbine that is suitable for on shore wind
farm, so for this project, using GE 2.75 would be a good idea because it has a better AEP and
capacity factor compare to V110

FAA
After going 25 miles radius, two airports were found. The first airport (Cheyenne RGL/ Jerry
Olson Field) is 22.23 miles South East of the met tower. The second airport (Laramie Regional
Airport) is located 24.55 miles South West of the met tower.
Department of Defense Preliminary Screening
After putting coordinates of the met tower (41 deg, 25’,21.41”N) and longitude (105 deg, 09’,
06.13”) on departments of defense website, below is the result.
Met tower single point (Long Range Radar)

The black object on the far left bottom of the image represents met tower.
The red circle above the met tower indicates a region that’s not suitable
for a wind farm project due to hills. The distance between the met tower
and the upper red circle is roughly 20 miles. The red circles in the bottom
part of the image show that the area is not good for wind project because
of roads and ranches.
The yellow region in the image indicates “caution area” with some type of
impact. Department of Defense needs to be contacted for clearance before
starting the project.

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Fig: 18: Met Tower Single Point Long Range Radar

Polygon (Long Range Radar)

After moving 2 miles farther from each corner of the project


side below is the result of the long-range radar.
The grey area is part of project but was eliminated because
it’s outside of my search area. The box in the middle
represents my project area. The green color in the box
indicates that wind farm project can be carried out in that
region with no expected impact, Even though it indicates that
wind farm project can be carried out in that area, it’s strongly
advisable to contact the Federal Aviation Administration
before starting the project. The yellow part in the box means
caution zone. Federal Aviation Administration needs to be
contacted for evaluation and approval.

Fig 19: Polygon (Long Range Radar)


NEXRAD
After carrying out weather screening (Nexrad screening tools), the result image below was given.

The dark green area indicates that there might be some


impacts possible. Even though consultation with National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is optional, it’s
recommended to get in contact with them for proper
examination of the area. The yellow side indicates high
chances of impacts. National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration needs to be contacted to discuss project
details and perform a detailed impact analysis. National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration may also
request mitigation of significant impacts.
The orange area indicates mitigation zone. National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will likely ask
for mitigation if a detailed analysis shows that the project
will cause significant impact.
Fig 20: Nexrad

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Red zone indicates severe impact likely. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
request developers not to build wind turbines within 3 kilometer of the NEXRAD. National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will require detailed impact analysis.

Military Operation

The blue lines on the map represent flight part. Looking at the
elevation of the area, there should be no interference between
flights and the met tower in that area. The black little ladders
on the south west (bottom left corner) area of the map
represents transmission lines The transmission lines can be
used to transfer power (electricity) to the met tower. The red
dot with a cross in the middle represent the met tower. Also,
right above the met tower are long thin lines crossing flight
part V132. Those line represent rail roads. Based on the result
from the military operation, it’s obvious that a wind project
can be carried out in this area. There might be a small issue
with the railway, because most railway companies don’t like
to have wind project close to the railroad.


Fig 21: Military Operation
The screening helps to obtain a preliminary review of potential impact to long range, weather
radars, and military training routes of the project site. This study will help to determine is the
project site is a good for wind farm.

Noise Rings
Decibel is defined as measure of sound level from the ground to the maximum tip height. Each
turbine has a different noise level. Buffers were added to the satellite image of the site location
for this project in the QGISsoftware. For this project, noise rings buffer of 50db (moderate
rainfall), 60db (conversation) and 80db(vacuum) would be done around each turbine. At 50db
noise ring buffer around each turbine was 628 meters, which is the farthest. For 60db, the noise
ring buffer around each turbine was 183 meter while 80db noise buffer ring was 0. The buffer
indicated that one turbine from the potential turbine layout design affects the edge of a property
owner’s home at the 50-decibel noise level.

Shadow Flicker

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Shadow flicker is the flickering effect caused
when rotating wind turbine blades periodically
casts shadows through constrained openings.
The formula for shadow flicker length is
turbine height/tan of angle X. Below is an
image of a shadow flicker

Fig 22: Shadow Flicker

A buffer of 400 meters was added to the site analysis, which also accounts for the effect of
shadow flicker to surround features. Homes affected by shadow flicker would go through a
notification from developers to property owners, as well as any arrangements or negotiations
needed due to this issue.

Biological Impacts
When building a wind farm, one has to put into consideration the effect wind farm may have on
the environment such as plants and animals. According to “mycountry955.com”, three animals
were named as endangered species for horse creek. The animals are: Black footed ferret, Kendall
warm springs dace, and Wyoming toad. During construction, ecological resources would be most
affected by the disturbance of habitat in areas near the turbines, support facilities, and access
roads. Wildlife in surrounding habitats might also be affected if the construction activity (and
associated noise) disturbs normal behaviors, such as feeding and reproduction.
Health and Safety
Potential impacts to worker and public health and safety from wind energy project construction
would be similar to those expected for any construction project with earthmoving, large
equipment, and transportation of oversized materials. In addition, health and safety issues
include working at heights, working in potential weather extremes, and possible contact with
natural hazards, such as uneven terrain and dangerous plants, animals, or insects. There should a
gate or fence build around the project area so that people and wild animals can’t get in. Also
there should be a sign that says no trespassing around the project site. Apply herbicide on the
plants to destroy all the dangerous plants.
Transport and Traffic
Short-term increases in the use of local roadways would occur during the construction period.
Heavy equipment likely would remain at the site. Shipments of materials are unlikely to affect
primary or secondary road networks significantly, but this would depend on the location of the
project site relative to material source. Oversized loads could cause temporary transportation
disruptions, and could require some modifications to roads or bridges (such as fortifying bridges
to accommodate the size or weight). Shipment weight might also affect the design of access
roads for grade determinations and turning clearance requirements.

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Socio-economy
Direct impacts would include the creation of new jobs for workers for the people in the
community, and the associated income and taxes paid. Indirect impacts would occur as a result
of the new economic development, and would include new jobs at businesses that support the
expanded workforce such as hotels, restaurant etc or provide project materials, and associated
income and taxes. Wind energy development activities could also potentially affect property
values, either positively from increased employment effects or image of "clean energy," or
negatively from proximity to the wind farm and any associated or perceived environmental
effects (noise, visual, etc.).Adverse impacts could occur if a large in-migrant workforce,
culturally different from the local indigenous group, is brought in during construction. This
influx of migrant workers could strain the existing community infrastructure and social services.
Water and soil

There is no river or stream within the project area. Both in the valley and uplands, the soils are
productive and, with irrigation, capable of forming the basis of a paying agriculture. There are
three types of soil in Laramie namely: residuals soil, alluvial soils and colluvial soils. Surface
disturbance, heavy equipment traffic, and changes to surface runoff patterns could affect the soils
and this might lead to soil erosion. Impacts of soil erosion could include soil nutrient loss. To be
on the safer side, it’s advisable to follow the soil management code of Wyoming State. Also,
erosion be reduced by avoiding grading roads.
Archaeological & Cultural Resources
The region was named Horse Creek because of its location on Horse Creek (Annals of
Wyoming). There is a recreation center, park post office and rail station. There’s also an
abandoned coalmine at Horse creek. Grazing of cattle, horses and sheep is the only industry in
that area. There is a private own cemetery located at 15th street Laramie. This cemetery has no
effect on the building a wind farm in this area
Solid / Hazardous Waste
Solid and industrial waste would be generated during construction activities. The solid waste
would likely be nonhazardous and consist mostly of containers, packaging materials, and wastes
from equipment assembly and construction crews. Industrial wastes would include minor
amounts of paints, coatings, and spent solvents. Hazardous materials stored on-site for vehicle
and equipment maintenance would include petroleum fluids (lubricating oils, hydraulic fluid,
fuels), coolants, and battery electrolytes. Oils, transmission fluids, and dielectric fluids would be
brought to the site to fill turbine components and other large electrical devices. Also, compressed
gases would be used for welding, cutting, brazing, etc. These materials would be transported off-
site for disposal, but impacts could result if the wastes were not properly handled, and were
released to the environment.
Air Quality

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Emissions resulting from construction activities include vehicle emissions; diesel emissions from
large construction equipment and generators; volatile organic compound releases from storage
and transfer of vehicle/equipment fuels, small amounts of carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides
and particles from blasting activities.
Electrical Analysis
The transmission line is very important in this project. This is the only way power generated
from this project can be sold. The voltage on the transmission line was given as 69V, which as an
economy power of 70,000 KW that’s equivalent to 70MW. It’s important not to go over the
economic capacity factor of 55 percent on the line. Because if it goes over 55 percent capacity
there will be more losses which means enough power cannot be sold. This would cause the line
to wear faster. The economic capacity factor brings the line down to about 38MW of capacity.
Transmission lines are very costly; to make this project economical profitable it’s advisable to
relatively close to one. Transformer is very important for the substation. At transformer rated
40/56/70 MVA is required for this project. Transformer helps step up the voltage from overhead
to the substation. For this project, every turbine string is connected to the substation built in the
center of the wind farm.

Permitting
Local
The local regulatory authorities include counties and municipalities within the state of Wyoming.
In Wyoming, commercial and non-commercial wind project consisting of an individual wind
turbine or multiple turbines less than 30 that generate more than 0.5 megawatt of electricity are
under the permitting jurisdiction of Local County permitting requirements. Commercial wind
projects consisting of 30 or more turbines, regardless of construction costs, are under the
jurisdiction of the state and/or federal government. According to the state of Wyoming, It is
unlawful to locate, erect, construct, reconstruct, or enlarge a wind energy facility without first
obtaining a permit from the board of county commissioners in the county in which the facility is
located. Wyoming Statute for Wind Energy Facilities identifies application requirements and
minimum standards required for permitting wind facilities at the county level. In addition to the
statutory requirements, many counties have also developed their own wind energy regulations
that go beyond the statutory minimums. Owners and developers of a wind energy facility are
encouraged to check the regulations in the county or counties where their project is located.
Owners or developers of a wind energy facility must submit an application to the Board of
County Commissioners (BOCC) in the county, or counties, where the facility is located.

State

The siting and permitting of wind energy developments in the state of Wyoming will typically
involve several state agencies, including the Wyoming Public Service Commission (PSC),
Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ), Wyoming State Preservation Office
(SHPO), Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD), Wyoming Department of

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Transportation (WYDOT), Wyoming Office of State Lands and Investment (OSLI), and the
Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources (WYSPCR)

Federal

There are a number of federal agencies, which are likely to be involved in permitting any wind
project such as federal land management agencies such as the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) or the United States Forest Service (USFS) may be both the manager of the land and the
permitting authority.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is another federal entity that is almost always
involved in permitting a wind project, because every structure over 200 feet tall, within a certain
radius of an airport, or within critical flight paths must be permitted by the FAA. Projects must
meet FAA lighting requirements and regulations for siting. To determine these factors for your
project you must fill out FAA forms 7460-1 and 7460-2. Tall cranes used during construction
will also require FAA permits.

If the project poses potential impacts on wildlife habitat or species protected under the
Endangered Species Act, the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, or the Migratory Bird
Treaty Act, wind project permitting will most likely involve coordination and consultation with
the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Compliance with NEPA will be required
if the wind development or authorization to develop is a federal action, qualifies as “major,” and
has potential for a significant environmental impact. If a wind project is proposed on federal
land, a federal agency has the power to control the authorization of the wind project (e.g., a
federal permit or lease is required). Where multiple federal agencies have NEPA responsibilities,
a lead agency will be appointed to coordinate NEPA compliance.

Land Use and Building Permit


In the area selected for the building of the wind project, there are 95 different plots of land
owned by 72 different people. This will shrink once the project is more clearly define and an
optimal place is picked. To get the plat maps, one has to go to the tax county tax assessor’s office
and purchase them. A plat map is a map that shows the number of lands available in an area,
which also includes the information of the landowners. At the early stage of project
development, letter with proposal of wind farm has to be sent to the landowners.

Land Owner Considerations & Agreements

Terms & Compensations


The lease agreement would last for 25 years and each landowner within the project zone will get
$100 square per mile for every month. They also have the option of getting 10 % of the annual
profit throughout the length of this project.

Royalty
Landowners are entitled 4% royalty with the increment of 2 % for every 5 years. For every year,
over $270,000 has been budget for landowners royalty.

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Public Outreach
It’s in the interest of the company to give back to the community who has made it possible to
build this wind farm. Deeznut Wind project has set aside over $100,000 annually for scholarship.
This scholarship is available to students from middle school to college who are in need of
financial assistance. Also Deeznuts wind farm is planning a program that provides training to
high school students for renewable energy industry jobs. This included a week long "boot camp"
where students where introduced to green technologies which utilization and provide hands on
experience.

Construction
Collection lines, service roads, logistics
Horse creek only has two highways, WYO 211 (Horse Creek road)- north – south route running
to Cheyenne, and Chugwater to the northeast. County road 288 runs west from horse creek to
Laramie. These two highways are useful for easy movement of turbines during construction
stage. There is a railroad that cut through highway 288. Incase there’s a road construction; the
railroad can also be used as an alternative route to bring machineries, parts and tools to the site.
Contracting and building site
Private consultants and contractors serve the needs of any party in wind turbine transactions
willing to pay their fees. They provide specialized skills or knowledge not generally available. A
consulting meteorologist can independently evaluate the wind resources at a site. Engineering
consultants can offer technical comparisons among competing wind turbines or provide “due
diligence” reports to banks considering loans for proposed wind projects. Contractors are often
needed for the construction phase of wind projects for tasks such as pouring concrete and
erecting the turbines.

Post Construction Monitoring and O&M


Post-construction monitoring efforts at wind energy developments typically focus on mortality
monitoring: standardized carcass searches at operational turbines designed to account for
scavenger activity (i.e., the removal of carcasses from the project area by scavengers) and
searcher efficiency (i.e., the proportion of carcasses available to be found that are actually
found). In addition, post-construction monitoring activities may include the continuation of pre-
construction surveys to assess their predictive ability and active monitoring of wildlife responses
(e.g., disturbance or habitat avoidance) to an operational wind energy development.

Project Lifetime, Decomposition and Remediation


The project is schedule for 25 years. Two years before the project ends, officials of Deeznuts
Wind project will have a talk with the O&M Company on how to decompose wind project.
Deeznut wind farm will do everything to make sure that the land is in good condition after the
decomposition. Deeznuts will enforce “safety first” rule during decomposition of turbines so that
nobody gets hurt on the site.

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Conclusion
Deeznut Wind project is a billion dollar project that will benefit the city of Laramie. This Wind
project will add positive value such as employment, tax revenues and economy development to
Laramie community. This project will also enlighten the people of Laramie on how beneficial
renewable energy most especially wind can be to them. This project will also motivate students
in Laramie to develop interest in Wind Energy.

Appendix

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Cited Page
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/earthnews/8386273/Shadow-flicker-rotating-blades-can-
cause-headaches.html

http://www.windpowermonthly.com/article/1138562/close---e126-worlds-biggest-turbine

"Siting and Permitting of Electric Generation Projects." Wind Energy Essentials (2015): 315-32.
Web.

"The Wind Energy Development Process." Wind Energy Essentials (2015): 100-14. Web.

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