Being a good steward of the land means saying no to wind turbines

To the Editor:

The definition of agriculture is: the science or practice of farming, including cultivation of the soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food, wool, and other products.

Calling it a “wind farm” does not make it a farm. A “wind farm” is part of the energy industry. If we call a coal mine a “coal farm” does that make it a farm? How about “natural gas farms” or “oil farms”?

Farmers make money from the land they own. Some people only care about money without regard to the damage they do the land. Farmers are smart — at least the productive ones. Most farmers are conservationists and understand sustainable farming. They have to know about business, chemicals, the weather, machinery, the soil, etc., if they are to be successful. It is a dangerous profession and a challenging one. There are plenty of farmers who make money and do well without wind turbines.

Some farmers see their farms as a legacy for generations to come. A heritage to be passed down through the family. Most farmers are landowners. But not all landowners are farmers. Most absentee landowners do not live in Iowa County. I had one absentee landowner tell me, “I would never live here.” They don’t live in Iowa County — never intend to live in Iowa County and do not care how industrial wind turbines affect any of the people living here. Approximately 20-30 percent of the people who sign contracts for industrial wind turbines are absentee land owners.

The set back from property lines in the Diamond Trail Wind Farm agreement is only 600 feet. Want to know what that looks like? Before you sign a contract for industrial wind turbines — get on interstate 80 and drive west. Around mile marker 210 you can see for yourself what a turbine looks like with the allowed setback. Look at the fence line and imagine it’s your fence line. Then imagine trying to tend a garden, build a fence, hunt, or play with your children or grandchildren that close to a turbine.

Don’t forget about the sound — shadow flicker or blinking red lights all night long. Even 1,000 feet is not going to make much difference with a machine that huge. Especially since new technology is replacing old blades with longer ones, putting blades that travel over 150 mph at the tip that much closer to you and your loved ones.

It is up to you to protect the land and agriculture in Iowa County from being industrialized. Government will not protect you. Developers will try and lure you in with offers of money and tell you — you are “protecting the environment.” But you don’t protect farm ground or the environment with bulldozers — tons of rock and cement and miles of gravel roads through productive agricultural land. Be a good steward of the land by saying no to any more turbines in Iowa County.

Denise Leubka, Williamsburg