New York State officials approve Baron Winds project

The New York State Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment approved a proposal by Baron Winds to build and operate a wind facility in Steuben County.

The 242-megawatt (MW) Baron Winds project features 68 high-capacity, 492-foot tall wind turbines with 11 of the turbines producing 2.625 MW and the remaining 57 producing 3.675 MW. Located in the towns of Cohocton, Dansville, Fremont, and Wayland, the wind farm will connect to the state’s electrical grid.

“In keeping with Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s ambitious goals for carbon reduction and for a clean-energy economy, we continue to develop clean energy resources in New York State to help all New Yorkers,” Siting Board Chair John Rhodes said. “Appropriately sited wind farms, such as Baron Winds, provide clean and renewable energy and are essential as we continue on the road toward a zero-carbon emission electric sector by 2040.”

The project will also include the construction of approximately 16.5 miles of access roads, 31 miles of underground collection lines, a collection substation, a point of interconnection with the electric grid through the existing 230 kV Canandaigua switching station, up to four permanent meteorological towers each approximately 328 feet tall, up to two temporary staging areas for construction, and a 4,000- to 6,000-square-foot operation and maintenance building.

Baron Winds will be located on privately leased rural land that could continue to be used for farming, forestry, and other comparable uses. Construction will create about 117 direct jobs and 10 permanent jobs onsite jobs.

In approving the plan, the Siting Board determined that any impacts to the environment have been avoided or mitigated to the maximum extent practicable.