Mar. 29--A remote area along the Virginia-Kentucky border -- private property far removed from homes and highways -- looks to be an ideal spot for a wind energy project.

Dominion Resource Services and BP Alternative Energy plan to erect 50 to 100 wind turbines there in Wise County, in an area north of Appalachia and Norton. Much of the land already has been mined for coal and some is being mined now. The property is owned by land giant Penn Virginia, which will lease the property to the wind project developers.

We support the efforts for several simple reasons.

Diversifying our energy sources makes us stronger. The area being considered is remote and unlikely to be developed for any other tax-generating purpose that benefits the public. The site also does not pose any obvious hazard, and the public is not even expected to be able to see the turbines.

Wise County stands to gain plenty in terms of tax revenue from the turbines and a modest number of jobs -- perhaps 100 to 150 during construction and about 10 permanent jobs to maintain the turbines and manage the site.

And the effort helps Dominion and BP meet renewable energy benchmarks set by the state -- the goal is 12 percent of energy from renewable sources by 2022.

Five Wise County supervisors attended a public meeting this week on the wind project and expressed support.

The companies also have announced a joint project in Tazewell County, but they have bought only a quarter of the necessary land for it. At this time, we are reserving judgment on this project. Called East River Mountain, the Tazewell site would be visible from a mountain ridge in that county, a likely point of contention for residents.

The Wise County project, called the Mill Creek Project Area, includes three weather-gathering stations along mountain ridges. Nine Mile Spur and Bluff Spur are north of former coal camps outside Appalachia. Rodgers Ridge is north of Norton and west of Pound, in the Flat Gap area of Wise County. The stations will gather weather data for a year to ensure there is sufficient wind to profitably place turbines in the area.

There are a variety of other hurdles before this project could become reality. A habitat evaluation is needed to determine if there are rare or endangered species of animals, and to determine if native bat and bird populations might be affected.

Because the areas have been mined, there needs to be subsidence monitoring. These turbines would be massive -- about 400 feet tall with their bases set in concrete 8 feet deep and 50 feet wide.

But the Wise County site meets several important standards for success. There is a 161-kilovolt power line that crosses the site and connects to an electrical substation outside Norton. There is virtually no visual impact or noise concerns. There appears to be a good amount of wind. The private landowner wants to work with the develop

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