Forward Wind Energy Center

The Forward Wind Energy Center is a 137.85 megawatt (MW) wind farm in Dodge and Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin near the village of Brownsville. The wind farm sits on approximately 4,000 acres of land.[1] "Forward" is the state's motto. The facility is sited in close proximity to the Horicon National Wildlife Refuge and the Horicon Marsh State Wildlife Area which provide nesting areas for waterfowl and a resting area for large numbers of migratory birds.[2]

Forward Wind Energy Center
Forward Wind Energy Center as viewed from Wisconsin Highway 49 near Brownsville, Wisconsin
CountryUnited States
Locationnear Brownsville, Wisconsin
Coordinates43°36′58″N 88°30′44″W
StatusOperational
Construction began2007
Commission date2008
Owner(s)Wisconsin Public Service (44.6%)
Wisconsin Power & Light (42.6%)
Madison Gas and Electric (12.8%)
Wind farm
TypeOnshore
Power generation
Units operational86 turbines
Make and modelGE 1.6sle 1.6 MW
GE 1.85sle 1.85 MW
Nameplate capacity137.85 MW
Capacity factor27.7% (average 2009-2017)
Annual net output335 GW·h
Turbines of the farm, taken in 2014

The project cost approximately $178 million dollars (2008 purchase price).[3]

Details

The project was developed by Invenergy and initially proposed in 2004 to be a 200 MW facility with 133 wind turbines. The draft environmental impact statement (EIS) was submitted on March 8, 2005.[4] After a 45-day public comment and review period, the final environmental impact statement was submitted on May 18, 2005. The project area contained within the final environmental impact statement project covers 32,400 acres (~50 square miles) with approximately 11,000 acres dedicated to turbine easements.[5] The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin issued a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) on July 14, 2005.[6]

Despite perceived initial support, there grew significant controversy in the siting selection related to the wildlife, visual, and other impacts.[7] These led to further environmental studies, offers of additional monetary compensation, organized opposition, and delays due to legal action. Permitting from an Air Route Surveillance Radar facility to the south also slowed the project.[8] The experience led some communities in the region to pass moratoria on further development, some of which have been challenged by state agencies.[9]

The project was eventually approved to begin construction in 2007.[10] Brownsville-based Michels Corporation provided EPC services.[11] Completed in 2008, the downsized facility includes 85 General Electric SLE 1.6 MW wind turbines and a single GE SLE 1.85 MW turbine.[2] It is setback two-miles from the Horicon Marsh located to the west.[12] Two smaller wind farms named "Cedar Ridge" (68 MW) and "Butler Ridge" (45 MW), as well as the 145 MW Blue Sky Green Field Wind Energy Center, came online within about the same year.[13][14]

Followup information sessions and academic studies on the environmental and cultural impacts of the project have been pursued. Macalester College has documented the controversy surrounding the project and studied its implications.[9] At the invitation of the Friends of the Horicon National Wildlife Refuge in 2010, the conservation chair of the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology further addressed local concerns on the effects of wind turbines on wildlife.[15] A two-year study of bird and bat mortality at the Forward Wind facility was completed by University of Wisconsin researchers for the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin, with a report published in August 2011. Inline with similar studies elsewhere, it showed a relatively larger number of bat fatalities and a lesser number of added bird deaths. Red-tailed hawks represented around 20% of recorded bird fatalities.[16]

Electricity production
Generation (MW-h) of Forward Wind Energy Center and Capacity Factor[17]
Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Annual (Total) Capacity Factor (%)
2008 18,575 13,333 18,027 33,862 33,511 46,205 163,513 26.9
2009 34,436 38,006 37,821 35,367 33,831 17,840 16,093 21,580 9,966 15,300 27,585 19,392 307,217 25.4
2010 34,587 19,660 37,821 41,281 26,208 17,348 18,520 19,204 27,179 29,662 38,227 32,419 342,116 28.3
2011 24,543 38,689 25,887 35,554 38,742 23,830 16,448 12,649 21,547 30,545 39,981 33,519 341,934 28.3
2012 42,554 30,091 41,177 32,129 28,396 27,027 14,483 17,089 23,574 34,800 29,547 30,376 351,243 29.1
2013 43,779 32,517 28,335 40,018 29,839 16,373 15,762 13,700 21,076 26,701 40,854 28,153 337,107 27.9
2014 45,855 36,577 36,233 39,597 25,255 21,338 18,403 12,209 19,408 32,704 37,641 25,819 351,039 29.1
2015 34,718 31,539 35,609 34,547 32,999 15,679 16,588 19,745 20,387 25,345 43,681 38,539 349,376 28.9
2016 30,241 34,728 26,472 31,507 26,695 19,714 17,936 12,369 23,157 25,979 32,063 39,028 319,889 26.5
2017 30,217 32,083 33,675 32,828 27,853 23,566 11,873 10,539 13,476 30,401 33,517 33,211 313,239 25.9
2018 25,726 18,701 21,086 16,830 14,315 9,878 8,263 8,933 10,036 18,110 17,223 18,881 187,982 15.6
2019 36,107 31,364 35,120 38,076 26,802 23,748 15,271 13,265 20,010 30,889 29,518 39,019 339,199 28.1
2020 *

* Data not available

See also

References
  1. "Forward Wind Park (Wisconsin Public Service)". accel.wisconsinpublicservice.com. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  2. "Fact Sheet - Forward Wind Park" (PDF). Wisconsin Public Service Corporation. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  3. "Forward Wind Park (Wisconsin Public Service)". accel.wisconsinpublicservice.com. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
  4. "Forward Wind Project – Volume 1 Draft Environmental Impact Statement". Public Service Commission of Wisconsin and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Volume 1. March 8, 2005. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  5. "Forward Wind Project – Volume 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement". Wisconsin Public Service Commission and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. May 18, 2005. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  6. "Application of Forward Energy LLC for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to Construct a Wind Electric Generation Facility and Associated High Voltage Electric 9300-CE-100 Transmission Facilities, to be Located in Dodge and Fond du Lac Counties". Public Service Commission of Wisconsin. July 14, 2005. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  7. "Wind Energy Landscapes - Forward Wind". Macalester College. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  8. Thomas Content (March 23, 2006). "Horicon wind farm foes find unlikely ally in U.S. Air Force". Milwaukee Journal.
  9. "Forward Wind - Details". Macalester College. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  10. "Invenergy's Forward Energy Wind Project In Wisconsin to Proceed with Construction". Invenergy. July 25, 2007.
  11. "Michels History". Michels Corporation. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  12. "PSC approves wind farm near Horicon Marsh". Electric Light & Power. July 11, 2005.
  13. "Cedar Ridge Wind Farm". openei.org. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  14. "Butler Ridge Wind Farm". openei.org. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  15. Meagan Sheridan (May 14, 2010). "Ornithologist discusses the effect of wind turbines on birds". Beaver Dam Daily Citizen.
  16. "Assessing Bird and Bat Mortality at the Forward Energy Center". Public Service Commission of Wisconsin. August 2011. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  17. "Electricity Data Browser". www.eia.gov. Retrieved 2020-07-12.
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