This project will cause significant adverse impacts to people in Tri-Cities.

Visual Impacts will likely result in a reduction in real estate property values of 20 to 30 percent.

EFSEC originally made very clear findings regarding the severity of the visual impacts. The Final EIS states:

“… the Project, as proposed, would visually transform the region and, due to the location of wind turbines along ridgelines, be especially impactful on the communities of Benton City and the City of Kennewick due to an undesirable “skylining” effect.”

“…The Project would have a significant visual impact on the region that is impossible to fully mitigate. Wind turbines should be excluded at least from ridgeline portions of the site where they would be prominently visible.”

“...further mitigation measures, to include elimination and removal of multiple turbines, must be required in order to minimize the visual impact of the Project on the Tri-Cities region and on Yakama Nation TCPs.”

Without explanation, the Governor’s Remand Order from October 18, 2024, ignores the Council’s findings and says that mitigations should not be required.

This is one of Tri-Cities CARES major legal issues. The turbines will be visible from all over Tri-Cities. As of January 2024, the average selling price of homes in Tri-Cities was $447,800. The economic losses will be significant. The closer to the project you are, the greater the impact will be. This is what we are fighting to prevent.

This shows what the view of the 499-foot-high turbines will look like from Badger Mountain. You have to add 170 feet to the size of the simulated turbines. There are no good visual models of the 671 -foot-high turbines available.

How will the visual impacts affect you? See for yourself. Look at the computer simulations TCC had developed from residential community locations all over the Tri-Cities here.