18-1607-EL-BGN: Emerson Creek Wind Farm

Firelands Wind, LLC seeks Board approval of a wind-powered electric generation facility consisting of up to 71 wind turbines at 87 possible locations with a maximum total generating capacity of approximately 297.66 megawatts.

Staff Report of Investigation (includes maps)

Hearings

The local public and adjudicatory hearings will be conducted using Cisco Webex, a web-based platform that facilitates participation by telephone or live video on the internet.

Local public hearing

The local public hearing will be held on August 20, 2020, beginning at 3 p.m. The purpose of the local public hearing is to allow residents in the local community affected by the project, who are not parties to the case, to provide testimony about the project. Testimony will be limited to five minutes per witness, and the hearing transcript will become part of the case record considered by the OPSB.

Individuals who wish to provide testimony must register with the OPSB before 12 p.m. on August 19, 2020, by completing the online registration form at https://opsb.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/opsb/events/emerson-creek-public-hearing or by calling (800) 686-7826. Individuals will be required to provide their full name and contact information, specify whether they plan to join the Webex event by internet or by telephone, state whether or not they intend to testify, and select a time block to testify from either between 3 and 6 p.m., or after 6:30 p.m.

On the day of the local public hearing, all individuals who have registered to testify during the 3 to 6 p.m. time block should be prepared to speak beginning at 3 p.m. All those registered to testify after 6:30 p.m. should be prepared to speak beginning at 6:30 p.m. Individuals who are testifying by internet will be promoted from Webex “attendee” to “panelist” when it is their turn to testify. Individuals who are testifying by telephone will be called by an OPSB staff member when it is their turn to testify, and then connected to the public hearing. If access or other issues are experienced during the local public hearing, individuals should immediately use the chat function within Webex or contact the OPSB at (614) 466‑6843 for assistance.

If individuals wish to supplement their testimony with an exhibit, a copy of the document, along with a reference to case number 18-1607-EL-BGN, must be provided to the OPSB no later than August 28, 2020. Exhibits may be emailed to contactOPSB@puco.ohio.gov or mailed to Ohio Power Siting Board, 180 East Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215. 

Individuals who wish to attend the public hearing by telephone and not offer testimony may do so by calling 1-408-418-9388 at any time during the hearing and entering access code 129 345 1686. The local public hearing will also be live streamed at www.youtube.com/user/PUCOhio.

Adjudicatory hearing

The adjudicatory hearing in this proceeding will begin on Oct. 5, 2020, at 10 a.m. The purpose of the adjudicatory hearing is for Emerson Creek Wind, the OPSB staff, and parties to the case to present evidence regarding the proposed facility. The OPSB will provide additional details regarding how to attend the adjudicatory hearing at a later date.