Fire marshal OKs Groton Wind operations after deeming facility safe

GROTON The state Fire Marshals Office, which asked the state to halt operations at the Groton Wind facility last fall because of building and safety code violations, issued a report this week saying the plants owners have met the states requirements and all the needed permits have been issued.

The $120 million, 48-megawatt, 24-turbine wind-energy plant, which the states Site Evaluation Committee (SEC) threatened to close on Nov. 4, has now satisfied the fire marshal, the Attorney Generals Office and several others.

At least one intervenor still has complaints, and the SEC has more investigative and administrative work to do, so the investigation is not complete, said Michael Iacopino, the SECs attorney.

But the owners of Groton Wind, LLC Iberdrola Renewables of Spain and Portland, Ore. have fulfilled the requirements of an April compliance agreement with the Fire Marshals Office, which was the chief complainant.

The applicant has completed all of the requirements of the compliance agreement to the satisfaction of the fire marshal. Occupancy permits for the (Operations and Maintenance) building and each of the 24 towers were delivered to the site on Sept. 26, wrote Deputy Attorney General Ann M. Rice and attorney Dianne Martin of the states Transportation and Construction Bureau in a letter sent Monday to the SEC.

Art Sasse, director of communications and brand for Iberdrola Renewables, said his company has been busy, making sure it meets all the states requirements.

Public safety is our number-one priority at every single wind farm and solar plant that we operate and weve worked very hard to meet the rigorous safety standards at the state and local level, to assure the Groton community that we take our role as a responsible business partner and a good neighbor very sincerely, Sasse said Thursday.

Fire marshal investigators had said the plant did not have all the required state permits when it went online in December 2012. In August 2013, Ronald D. Anstey, section chief and investigator with the state Fire Marshals Office, found that the plants owners did not file fire code and safety code plans with the fire marshal, failed to provide required fire suppression at the turbines, and had not obtained proper approval from state agencies for its design and construction of the plant and its Operations and Maintenance building, which the company moved across the street from its originally stipulated location.

In its initial responses to the fire marshals claims, Iberdrola officials said they had obtained the proper permits through the Department of Environmental Services, and claimed they had acted lawfully.

But the company later agreed to the compliance agreement with the Fire Marshals Office, working to properly obtain the required permits for the wind turbines and for the Operations and Maintenance building,

Read the original here:
Fire marshal OKs Groton Wind operations after deeming facility safe