Getting to 100% renewable electricity will require a significant expansion in renewable generation as well as support infrastructure such as transmission and energy storage. Eddie Duncan (Paxwoord Acoustics), Abby Dery (TCE Bowman), Gordon Perkins (EDR), and moderator Malachi Brennan (SRH Law) tackled the question of what it will take to build this infrastructure in an environmentally responsible fashion in the REV2024 panel Environmentally Achievable 100% Renewables by 2035: Noise, Aesthetics & Water. The path forward includes being proactive about community engagement and mitigation measures as well as a shift in permitting rules and norms in Vermont.
One key idea that emerged from the conversation was the idea that there are no “perfect” sites for renewables that will enjoy unanimous support. Projects proposed closer to human settlements are more likely to draw opposition from individuals who don’t want renewables in their “backyard” while projects located further from existing development are more likely to be opposed on conservation grounds. As Vermont electrifies and moves towards 100% renewable energy, siting tensions are likely to increase, with more projects in proximity to more Vermonters.
The panelists had several suggestions on how to reduce conflict and ensure projects are successfully commissioned. These included:
- Emphasizing early and frequent engagement with host communities and neighbors. Connecting with neighbors with abutters to existing renewable energy projects can be one successful strategy to allay fears about the perceived negative impacts of living near renewables.
- Understanding community standards and planning on aesthetic mitigation. In many cases aesthetic mitigation may not be a matter of total screening but rather a combination of mitigation measures that help to maintain existing views.
- Integrating community benefits into the project such as by providing public access/recreation outside the project fenceline.
- Designing projects with flexibility in mind to be able to respond to community objections.
- Act in good faith with the understanding that this makes future projects easier and that “bad apples” increase community opposition to future projects.
As renewables become more ubiquitous, some mitigation measures may be more costly than current practices. These might include larger setbacks and steps to limit the project footprint such as utilizing retaining walls rather than slope gradients and maximizing investments in equipment efficiency.
While providing advice on how to build community acceptance, panelists also acknowledged that is currently easier to block a project in Vermont than in other states. Duncan noted that despite Vermont’s statewide permitting, it is fairly common to see a handful of people get a project shutdown and that it is much harder to do this in other states. Perkins added that projects should rarely be rejected over a single criterion and that we need to focus more on the community/global benefits that renewables provide. Escaping from this challenge-permitting environment will require a combination of changes in rules (e.g. the wind sound rule ) as well as a change in our expectation for seeing and living near energy generation facilities.
View panelists’ slides.