SIOUX FALLS, SD (KELO AM) After massaging new rules for wind farms for months, the Lincoln County Commission has delayed a final decision to give time for still more study.
"To fault on the side of caution, to fault on the side of better education and better information, I'll take that side every time," Commissioner Jim Schmidt tells KELO Radio. Tuesday night's decision means that any final resolution won't come until at least February, if then.
The new rules cover setbacks for wind turbine towers and noise levels. There has been a sharp debate for months in Lincoln between backers of a $600 million wind farm and a citizen's group that claims it's the wrong fit for the fast growing county.
Brian Minish with Dakota Power Community Wind is fine with the delayed decision, convinced it will lead to final victory for what could be South Dakota's largest commercial wind farm.
"They want to take more time to study these issues and to become better informed on them and we welcome that," says Minish,"We're very comfortable the science will support the positions we've taken."
But one of the big issues isn't really science, its aesthetics.
"You have to give some consideration to people who really don't want that, who really don't want to look at a wind tower," says Schmidt.