Locals petition to ‘End the Red Light District’ in Bingham County. It’s not what you think.
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FIRTH — In April, Lanette Ehlers looked up toward her beloved Taylor Mountain in Bingham County when something caught her eye.
Giant, blinking red lights.
“I was walking down my road at night time. I was enjoying that beautiful spring night,” says Ehlers. “When I looked up, they were right there in my face. And I was finally very tired of the blinking, flashing red lights ruining the night sky.”
Ehlers, a lifelong Bingham County resident, says she first noticed the lights, which warn nearby aircraft of how low they can fly without hitting a windmill, shortly after the 152-megawatt Cedar Creek Wind Farm was built. It opened on April 4.
But after a few days, Ehlers decided she’d had enough.
“I thought to myself, there’s got to be more people who despise these lights like I do. There has to be,” says Ehlers. “So I came right home, sat down, started to Google some things, and found out that there are many people who dislike the red lights.”
Eventually, Ehlers found like-minded locals who also “despised the light pollution.” Together they formed what is now known as “End the Red Light District.”
“I started to talk to some people in the community, and I found about four other people that were willing to go after this,” said Ehlers. “We came up with the name ‘End the Red Light District’, which I think is pretty appropriate for the matter at hand.”
After a deep-dive into research on the lights, the group quickly realized they weren’t alone.
In multiple other states, including Washington, Kansas and North and South Dakota, activists have either proposed or passed legislation against the lights on wind turbines. Instead, they have opted for a different solution – an Aircraft Detection Lighting System (ADLS).
According to North American Clean Energy, an ADLS is a “a sensor-based system that monitors the airspace around a wind farm, activating the obstruction lights only when aircraft are within a defined buffer zone.”
This would mean the red blinking lights would be on for a fraction of the time they are now, only when airplanes are in the vicinity.
“It’s run by a tower that you build up there amongst the windmills, and it has a three-mile detection radius of an incoming aircraft,” says Ehlers. “Once the aircraft reaches that zone, it’s a thousand feet above the highest windmill.”
Once the airplane is in the detection zone, the lights begin flashing warnings. As soon as the plane is outside the zone – the lights go off.
“I mean, it’s fabulous. In our area, especially up there along that ridge, (the lights) would not be on that much,” says Ehlers. “I’ve talked to the airport, and they’ve said that commercial airlines are up too high. They won’t set it off.”
So far, the group has been making headway for their cause, contacting the Bingham County Commissioners to discuss replacing the current lights with the ADLS, and even wind farm owner Clearway Energy Group to talk about the potential to build the new system.
Who’s going to pay for it?
According to Ehlers, the cost to build the system would be nearly $1 million, with an estimated $4,000 annual up-keep budget. End the Red Light District is hoping to convince Bingham County to pay for it from the revenue secured from the windmills themselves.
“We feel that the largest shareholder and the profit center should be should be the ones to pay to restore our night sky,” says Ehlers. “It shouldn’t be the community. We are taxpayers. We’ve already paid our taxes. We have elected officials that we have faith will listen to us.”
The group met with the Bingham County Commissioners on Wednesday to discuss the issue, and who could pay for such a costly project.
Commissioner Whitney Manwaring says it’s a solid plan, and admits the lights are definitely brighter than anyone assumed they’d be. But he emphasizes that Bingham County will not be paying for an ADLS.
“The county won’t be putting money into it, I can tell you that,” says Manwaring. “We’re not gonna take the county tax payers money to take care of one little issue in the Firth area from all over the county.”
Manwaring says End the Red Light District is in talks with Clearway to discuss the potential of their paying for the new system.
“It would have to be something that the company would be willing (to pay), because they’re in it for at least 25 years,” says Manwaring. “If you spread that million over 25 years, it might not be that bad to put up.”
EastIdahoNews.com reached out to Clearway for more information on the potential for an ADLS in Bingham County. We were given the following response:
“We appreciate the productive meetings we’ve had with area residents to hear concerns and discuss possible resolutions and challenges. Our top priority is to remain a responsible corporate citizen in Bingham County and maintain strong local relationships, and we will continue that outreach with all stakeholders as we explore all viable options.”
When asked if they’d be willing to pay for the ADLS, a Clearway representative told us they are “still working to assess all options and will work with local stakeholders as we work toward a solution.”
End the Red Light District has started a petition for anyone with an Idaho address to sign if they believe the lights on the wind turbines should be replaced with ADLS.
Find more information at EndTheRedLightDistrict.org. They say if they are successful in Bingham County, they will move on to petition for more ADLS in other counties such as Bonneville.
“We hope to send a message to all wind turbine companies that are trying to come build in Idaho, that we expect that when you come build a windmill here, that you use the ADLS,” says Ehlers. “That Idaho isn’t going to put up with anything less.”