"After NextEra proposed a wind farm in Greeley County, Nebraska two years ago, Robert Bernt, a dairy farm owner in the area, helped to mobilize community members against the idea.

His group held town hall meetings and ran ads on the radio, arguing the wind farm would “fragment” the community, by lowering property values and leaving “decaying blades in our landfills.”

Bernt estimated Greeley is the eighth county where he has fought a wind project. “In every case, people were upset because they felt they weren’t told the truth,” Bernt said.

To Bernt, the truth is that wind developers under-deliver on their economic promises to communities and harm the environment. He said people’s taxes don’t go down, and wind farms take away from an area’s natural beauty, noting rural Nebraska could use a boost in tourism income."

Mary Katherine Wildeman and Melina Walling report for the Associated Press July 25, 2024. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Wind Power Can Be A Major Source Of Tax Revenue, But Officials Struggle To Get Communities On Board" (AP) [3]