Each of the six wind turbines owned by Revolution Energy at the Port of Corpus Christi generates enough electricity to power 300 to 400 homes a day. Apex Energy proposes to build a similar farm on the Southside by Chapman Ranch. Staff photo
A $300 million wind energy project planned for Chapman Ranch on the southern outskirts of Corpus Christi was given approval by the Federal Aviation Administration recently. Apex Clean Energy applied to build 86 turbines on 27 square miles of the ranch, down from an original concept of 175 wind turbines on 31 square miles.
Known as Chapman Ranch Wind, the project is expected to generate $57 million in new tax dollars for Nueces County, while generating enough electricity to supply 77,000 homes.
Opponents of the project — and there are many — argue that the turbines could impede development on the Southside, the city’s only growth corridor, and interfere with military flight training systems. Turbines, which can be mistaken by radar as incoming planes or rain clouds, could also create problems for the Corpus Christi International Airport and weather tracking.
The airport is within line-of-sight of the planned location and intends to file a petition with the FAA asking for a review of its findings.
“We have not seen anything that seems to be a mitigation for the interference with radar,” CCIA Marketing Manager Kim Bridger-Hunt told reporters. “It’s an ongoing concern for us.”
The FAA conducted a separate study for each of the 86 wind turbines, evaluating structure and impact. The agency concluded that the turbines should cause no problems for area flight systems if properly marked and lighted. An agreement to this effect had already been reached with the Naval Air Station.
On the Chapman Ranch Wind website, a video features ranch owner Keith Mueggenborg.
“This land has been in my family for over 100 years,” he says. “As much wind as we have here, to let it go to waste, is tantamount to taking gasoline and pouring it on the ground to me.”
The video goes on to compare the Chapman project to one built by the company in Oklahoma in 2009. Built with cooperation of 180 landowners, the wind farms there doubled the tax base in Calumet Independent School District. The nearby town of Yukon is flourishing, claim residents and officials.
One rancher said the royalty payments from energy produced are keeping many of the ranches in business. Another said she was able to put in new gates and a new fence. The turbines also guarantee an income in drought and non-production years.
“The money you make is a blessing to your family,” said another farmer.
The Corpus Christi turbines will be built on active farmland. Each takes up a half acre. Crops are planted right up to the bases. Livestock grazes under the quietly turning blades without harm, say the landowners.
Although the city of Corpus Christi annexed 16 acres of the Chapman Ranch in an attempt to regulate or halt the wind farm, the 86 proposed turbines are not planned for that area of land.
