Any provisions contained in this section are generally applicable to all WECS unless otherwise specifically stated in the applicable section.
(A) Design safety certification and conformance to codes and standards. WECS and all components shall conform to all applicable industry standards, including those of the American National Standards Institute ("ANSI") and the International Electrical Commission. Applicants shall submit certificates of design compliance that equipment manufacturers have obtained from Underwriters Laboratories ("UL"), Det Norske Veritas ("DNV"), Germanischer Lloyd Wind Energie ("CGL"), or an equivalent third party. The WECS shall comply with all applicable local and county codes for electrical, mechanical and structural components of the facility. All documents provided for review shall be stamped by a professional engineer.
(B) Each application shall contain a certification by a structural engineer that the foundation and tower design of the WECS are within accepted professional standards for the given proposed location.
(C) Controls and brakes. Any and all WECS shall be equipped with manual and automatic controls and mechanical brakes to limit rotation of the blades to a speed below the design limits of the WECS. A professional engineer must certify that the rotor and overspeed control design and fabrication conform to good engineering practices. No changes or alterations from the certified design shall be permitted unless accompanied by professional engineer.
(D) Electrical lines. Any and all electrical wires and lines connecting WECS to other WECS or substation shall be installed underground.
(E) Utilities. All electrical components of any WECS shall conform to all applicable local utility standards and national electric codes.
(F) Color, finish, and appearance. The tower and the blades of the WECS shall be uniform in style and color and shall be off-white, light gray, or other neutral color. The finish of the tower and the blades shall be flat or matte and nonreflective. The required coloration and finish shall be maintained throughout the life of the system. The towers and blades shall be uniform in direction of blade rotation. Any on site buildings shall be designed such that they are unobtrusive to minimize the industrial character of the project. All colors, finishes and design shall conform to all applicable FAA requirements. Except for required warnings and tower identification, no lettering, company insignia, advertising or graphics shall be on any part of the tower, hub or the blades.
(G) Signage. No wind tower shall have any advertising material, writing, picture, or signage other than warning, equipment identification or ownership information. This prohibition shall include the attachment of any flag, decorative sign, streamers, pennants, ribbons, spinners or waiving, fluttering or revolving devices, but not including meteorological/weather devices. Signs warning of the high voltage associated with a WECS shall be posted at every entrance to a WECS and at the base of all pad mounted transformers and substations. A sign that provides emergency contact information, such as a phone number, shall be posted near each tower and operations and maintenance buildings. Visible, reflective, colored objects such as flags, reflectors or tape shall be placed on the anchor points of guywires, if any, and along the guywires up to a height of not less than eight feet from the ground. A sign that provides emergency contact information, such as phone number, shall be posted near the tower and the operations and maintenance building and each tower shall have posted a unique number for identification purposes.
(H) Power lines. All electrical control wiring and power lines shall be wireless or not aboveground except where wind farm collector wiring is brought together for connection to the transmission or distribution network, adjacent to that network.
(I) Access roads. The applicant shall minimize the number and width of access roads, minimize cut and fill on sloping terrain and use natural terrain where feasible for these access points.
(J) Lighting. Towers, blades, and/or other WECS components shall not be artificially lit unless otherwise required by the FAA. If required by the FAA to be lit, the lights shall meet the FAA requirements at the lowest intensity allowed. U-SWECS shall use Aircraft Detection Lighting Systems approved by the FAA which keep all lights off until an aircraft approaches. No glare shall extend beyond the boundaries of the WECS. Red lights which are timed to activate at intervals in unison are required for nighttime illumination. The applicant shall use and seek leave from the FAA to utilize the least intrusive lighting possible. The flash intervals of the lighting scheme of the entire WECS project shall be synchronized.
(K) Landscaping. Applicant shall minimize the disruption of natural environment, retain existing vegetation and native plant species to the maximum extent feasible and replant with native vegetation. If existing vegetation is disturbed during construction.
(L) Climb prevention. Any and all WECS shall be designed to prevent unauthorized access to electrical and mechanical components or access to the towers on the site. All U-SWECS must utilize a monopole design with an internal ladder and locked access door and all other WECS such design is preferred and guy wired towers are disfavored. All towers shall not be climbable from the ground to 15 feet aboveground and all access doors to towers and equipment shall be lockable.
(M) Avian and wildlife impact. Applicant of any U-SWECS or S-WECS shall have a third party, qualified professional conduct an analysis to identify and assess any potential impacts on wildlife and endangered species. The applicant shall take the appropriate measures to minimize, eliminate or mitigate adverse impacts identified in the analysis. The applicant shall identify and evaluate the significance of any net effects or concerns that will remain after mitigation efforts.
(N) Underground cable warnings. All cables, except where installed by trenchless methods, shall have an underground warning tape buried a minimum 24 inches below grade and a minimum of 12 inches above cable in the same trench. The warning tape shall be six-inches wide polyethylene plastic, shall be red in color, and shall have the appropriate warning stenciled on it.
(O) Agency permits. In addition to any and all permits required by the city, applicant shall obtain all required permits from other state and federal governmental agencies (such as the Federal Aviation Administration) prior to commencing construction or as otherwise required by the applicable laws and regulations. Copies or evidence of such permits shall be submitted to the city.
(P) Signal interference. WECS shall not be installed in any location where its proximity to existing fixed broadcast, retransmission or reception antennas for radio, television or wireless phone or other personal communication systems would produce electromagnetic interference with signal transmission or reception unless the applicant provides a replacement signal to the affected party that will restore reception to at least the level present before operation of the wind energy system. WECS shall not be installed in any location within the line of sight of an existing microwave communications link where operation of the wind energy system is likely to produce electromagnetic interference in the link's operation unless the interference is insignificant. WECS shall not be installed to negatively alter any Doppler Radar or other warning system of any local or national weather service. The applicant shall provide the project summary and site plan to all microwave transmission providers, weather warning services and all communication tower operators within five miles of any WECS to address potential conflicts. If after construction of the WECS, the owner or operator receives a written complaint related to interference with local broadcast residential television, the owner or operator shall take reasonable steps to respond to and remedy the complaint.
(Ord. 2021-MC03, passed 2-8-2021)