ROCK SPRINGS - When there's a full moon, Chris Plant, an instructor at Western Wyoming Community College, often takes his students up on White Mountain to see the view from the top of the local landmark, Pilot Butte.

Now he's worried a massive wind farm proposal for White Mountain could ruin that experience.

"I'm all for wind energy, but there are places on White Mountain open to hunting and recreation … and others like Pilot Butte, which to me is sacred," Plant said about the possible location of 200 or more turbines on the mountain as part of a proposed wind energy farm.

"You get the whole view of Sweetwater County and the surrounding areas up there … and I'd like to see that be mitigated," Plant told Bureau of Land Management officials Thursday evening.

Tasco Engineering, Inc., of Lehi, Utah, developed the county's first foray into wind energy, and it has incorporated two limited liability companies, Teton Wind and White Mountain Wind, for the project. The White Mountain project plans were outlined during a BLM open house in Rock Springs.

Teton Wind recently filed an application with the BLM for a second-phase expansion of its county-permitted, 36-turbine White Mountain Wind Energy Project.

White Mountain is a popular scenic recreation area that lies northwest of Rock Springs and north and east of the city of Green River, just north of Interstate 80.

The project would be located on approximately 13,140 acres of federal, state and private lands on White Mountain. The project area includes private parcels owned by the Rock Springs Grazing Association and Anadarko Petroleum, Inc.

The proposed site lies near the scenic landmark called Pilot Butte and near the county's recently completed Wild Horse Loop Tour, which runs along the rim of White Mountain.

Tasco Engineering was granted a conditional-use permit from the county last summer to construct 36 turbines on top of White Mountain, at a cost of approximately $100 million.

Tasco President Gary Tassainer said the company is seeking to expand that project and place an additional 69 turbines on the mountain as part of a second phase.

The company is looking at a possible maximum build-out of 240 total wind turbines on the mountain. The turbines would generate up to 350 megawatts of electricity, he said.

"I know in my mind (White Mountain) is the windiest place I've been," Tassainer. "We felt Rock Springs was an excellent place to do the latest wind technology."

Tasco wind meters placed on the north and south ends of the project area showed wind speed averages as high as 6-10 meters per second on the site, according to company data.

Experienced company

As in most states, southwest Wyoming's wind power is vast, and, as yet, mostly undeveloped. Wind developers, however, have been exploring sites in the region for the possible construction of more than 500 wind turbines over the next decade.

Tasco and partner Tri-Lateral Energy, LLC, recently completed the construction of 28 turbines on the Bridger Butte and Bigelow Bench area of Bridger Valley in neighboring Uinta County.

A second project phase under way will add another 38 turbines to the Bridger Butte project, according to plans.

"We feel like after 10 years in the [wind energy] business and with two very successful projects [in southwest Wyoming] under our belts, we could bring that experience" to the White Mountain project, Tassainer said.

He expects the White Mountain Wind Energy Project will cost $200 million or more for the first two phases - at a cost of about $2.5 million per turbine for the "most efficient" energy producers on the market.

Tassainer said the company has filed permit applications with the Wyoming Industrial Siting Council. Any industrial project with a $170 million price tag or more triggers an automatic review of the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of the project.

He said the county, city and state should reap many benefits from the project, including reductions in air emissions from coal- and gas-fired power generation and more power for local consumers.

Tasco currently has 20-year "fixed contracts" in place to sell the power generated from the White Mountain project, including an agreement with PacifiCorp for 80 megawatts, Tassainer said.

Plans call for moving the produced electricity through an existing 230-kilovolt power line that already runs along the top of White Mountain. A substation, underground power collection system and operations buildings will be constructed as part of the project.

"We will interconnect with the Rock Springs substation … and that electricity will be used here in the county; there's absolutely no question about that," Tassainer said.

Rick Frandsen, Tasco director of business development, said the project is expected to generate about $59 million in property tax revenue for Sweetwater County over the approximately 25-year life of the project.

He said jobs and earnings during construction and post-construction operation and maintenance could total as high as $17 million.

Site to be determined

Tassainer stressed that site locations for the wind turbines haven't been finalized. He said radio and microwave towers already in place on the mountain could reduce the build-out number to less than 230 turbines.

Tassainer said there will be some impacts to viewsheds in Rock Springs, Green River and outlying communities such as Farson and Eden.

"We can't hide these units from all of the city … or decide which block is more important in the city, or who should see [the turbines] and who shouldn't see them" he said. "With the full build-out … it is what it is and I can't hide them. There's not an equitable solution for everyone looking at them. There's just not."

Tassainer also noted the recent collapse of financial lending markets has delayed his planned financing of the project. He said a "verbal agreement" for project financing "tanked" three weeks ago and the company is now looking at other financial arrangements.

"We hope things will improve to where we can begin construction next year, but there's not a lot of dollars to use out there right now," Tassainer said.

Sweetwater Planner Mark Kot said the county plans to host two meetings next year on the Teton proposal, including public hearings before the county's planning and zoning commission and the Sweetwater County Commission.

Contact southwest Wyoming bureau reporter Jeff Gearino at (307) 875-5359 or gearino@tribcsp.com