Presentation of a mock environmental impact statement (EIS) written as a student semester project. The EIS was written by the fictional company Pacific Environmental Assessment Coalition regarding placement of a wind farm on Kauai Island, HI.

1. Kauai Wind Farm
Environmental Impact Statement
Prepared by Pacific Environmental Assessment Coalition
On behalf of Four Winds Energy Inc.

2. 1. Project Proposal
 Purpose and Need
2. Alternatives
 No action
 Scale
 Location
 Operation Treatments
 Technologies & Design
3. Affected Environment
 Human Environment
 Consequences & Alternatives
 Physical Environment
 Consequences & Alternatives
 Biological Environment
 Consequences & Alternatives
Content

3. Introduction:
 Four Winds Energy
proposes to build a 10
megawatt wind farm in
Kauai, Hawaii.
 The project would work in
conjunction with the Kauai
Island Energy Cooperative.

4. Purpose and Need
 Lower dependence on foreign oil
 Lower cost of electricity for consumers
 Tap into unused renewable resources
 Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative

5. Location

6. Alternatives

7. No Action Alternative
 Limitations in other renewable energy sources
 Solar, PV
 Hydropower
 Biomass
 Fossil fuels
 Other concerns
 Energy efficiency
 Sourcing energy from other islands

8. Options Eliminated from Further Study
Larger Scale
 Environmentally Intrusive
 Negative impacts on
endangered avian species
Smaller Scale
 Contributes little to
Kauai’s energy portfolio

9. Alternatives For Further
Protection of Avian Species
“Relatively small changes to wind-turbine operation resulted in nightly reductions in bat mortality,
ranging from 44% to 93%, with marginal annual power loss (< 1% of total annual output).”
(Arnett et al, Altering Turbine Speed Reduces Bat Mortality at Wind-Energy Facilities)

10. Operation Treatments
Increasing Cut-in Speed
HOW: increasing the cut-in speed to ≥ 5 m/s
PRO: reducing the risk to avian species when energy potential is lower
CON: unknown how this applies to native avian fauna populations
Restricting Nocturnal Operations
HOW: limiting operations after point of total darkness
PRO: mitigate threat to nocturnal Newell’s Shearwater population
CON: cost-prohibitive, significant loss in energy production
Seasonal Operation
HOW: limit operations during the critical reproductive period for Newell’s Shearwater
PRO: reduce the impact on Newell’s Shearwaters population on Kauai
CON: cost prohibitive, significant loss in energy production

11. Technological Applications
Ultrasonic Acoustic Deterrence
HOW: Installation of “ultrasonic boom boxes”
PRO: Aimed to reduce bat fatalities at wind farms
CON: Inconclusive results, unknown risk
De-Tect, Inc. Monitoring & Mitigation Systems
BirdMap Site Pre-Screening Risk Assessment
MERLIN Avian Radar System
VESPER: Fixed-beam Vertical Profile Bird & Bat Radar
SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition)
“DeTect's MERLIN SCADA is the only proven bird and bat
mortality risk technology in operational use at wind farms”
(http://www.detect-inc.com/wind.html)
(http://www.detect-inc.com/)

12. Alternative Designs
Underground Transmission Lines
HOW: install new transmission lines under the
surface and tie-in with existing overhead
transmission lines
PRO: reduce additional threats to avian species
CON: increased cost (installation & maintenance)
Saphonian Model
“Curved, sail-shaped body which follows a
back-and-forth, 3-D knot motion”
“Allows the conversion of the majority of the wind kinetic energy
into mechanical energy, either directly (mechanical transmission)
or through the use of pistons (hydraulic transmission)”
(Saphonenergy.com)

13. Alternative Designs
EWICON Model: Electrostatic Wind Energy Convertor
Fuller Wind Turbine
Powered by the Tesla turbine which “is spun by the surface tension of fluids, which “grab” the wheel
and turn it before exiting out the center.”

14. Alternative Locations

15.  High average wind speeds
 Not on protected lands
 Proximity to coast and current roadways
 Between two major populated areas
Why This Location?

16. Wind Speed on Kauai

17. Offshore Wind Farms
Higher Winds… Higher Prices

18. Kauai’s Shallow Reefs
The island of Kauai is surrounded with shallow reefs
which would force offshore wind turbines in deeper,
more expensive waters.

19. Cost of Installation & Repair

20. Affected Environment

21. Community and Culture
 “The Garden Isle”
 The people have a friendly nature, laid back
lifestyle.
 Residents consider themselves to be stewards
of the island
 Native Hawaiian traditions are very important
and even legally protected

22. Population Centers
Koloa and Poipu
 Koloa is a small town with permanent residents
 Poipu is a resort area, catering mainly to tourists
Lihue
 The center of island government and commerce
 Total combined population of 8,599

23. Public Services
 Kauai Island Utility Cooperration
 Active solar and hydropower
facilities
 The main emergency medical
facility is Wilcox Memorial
Hospital in Lihue
 Wilcox is designated as a Level 3
Trauma Center, serious cases are
transported to Oahu

24. Transportation Infrastructure
 Nawiliwili port in Lihue
 Lihue is home to the island’s
main airport
 Closest major entrance to the
site is Highway 50, a two lane
rural road
 Kahili Road connects Highway
50 to smaller roads on site

25. Regulations
Federal
 Endangered Species Act (ESA)
 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
State
 HRS 343, Act 50, Cultural Impact Assessment (CIA)
 Article XII, Section 7 of the Hawai‘i State Constitution

26.  Little negative impact due to location and scale of
project
 Will work with Kauai County to insure adequate
transportation infrastructure
 Open communication with Kauai Island Utility
Cooperative to minimize down time while
transitioning to power grid
 Will conduct Cultural Impact Assessment to ensure no
impact
Community and Cultural Impacts

27. Human Environment
 Current and Future
Land Use
 Economic Growth
 Farmlands/Timberlands
 Community Impacts

29. Economic Growth
Increase Self Reliance
Lower Pollution
Promote More Jobs

30. “The Garden Isle”

31. Human Environment Impacts
A very small portion of farmland will be
cleared for the wind farm site.

32. Local input will be taken into consideration to
achieve economic growth and still preserve the
Kauai way of life.

33. Physical Environment

34. Hydrology
 Surface Water
 Ground Water
 Floodplain
 Water Quality
 Storm Water Runoff

36. Geology
 Topography
 Soils
 Seismic Activity
 Paleontology

37. Pollutants
 Hazardous Wastes
 Noise
 Energy
 Air Quality

38. Biological Environment

39. Kauai Conservation Area
 36 natural community types
 383 endemic plant species
 80 considered rare/endangered
 15 endangered avian species
 Newell’s Shearwater

40. Invasive Species
Most significant:
 Feral Pigs
 Polynesian (AD 400)
& European (1778)
Also:
 Feral goats
 Mule deer
 Introduced rodent species

41. Project Scope
Hulē’ia National Wildlife Refuge

42.  Four Winds Energy proposes to build a 10 megawatt
wind farm in Kauai, Hawaii
 Alternative locations, designs have been considered
 Impact to culture, biological, physical, and human
environment have been considered
 Working in partnership with Kauai Island Utility
Cooperative towards sustainable energy goals
Summary