It seems as if there is no end to the continuation of extensions of negotiations between NextEra Energy and the Department of Defense over the wind company’s construction that reportedly interferes with military flight paths in Oklahoma.
State Attorney General Mike Hunter has announced yet another extension of the deadline to reach a mitigation plan on a wind farm along a route of airspace used by the military for training in western Oklahoma. At question is NextEra’s construction of wind turbines near Hinton.
NextEra has been authorized to proceed with construction on turbines that have been approved by the FAA.
Construction on the company’s wind farm west of Hinton was stopped in October after NextEra and the Oklahoma Strategic Military Planning Commission (OSMPC) agreed to work on a mitigation plan with the DOD to resolve the issue. The new deadline to reach an agreement is Thursday, Jan. 31.
The OSMPC contends the wind farm violates a recent amendment to the Wind Energy Development Act.
The changes to the law require a determination by the federal government that planned wind turbine construction has no military impact, or the company must have an approved mitigation plan from the DOD, before a wind farm is constructed or expanded.
The attorney general is representing the OSMPC in the negotiations.
