WGF Submits Comments on Vista Sands Solar Farm DEIS

Wisconsin’s Green Fire sends comment letter to the Public Service Commission (PSC).

We submitted our organizational comment letter on PSC Docket Number 9820-CE-100 on June 14, 2024. In this letter, experts from our Climate and Energy, Fisheries, and Wildlife Work Groups collaborated to provide a detailed set of comments on the 147-page Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed Vista Sands Solar Farm in Portage County.

Read our letter here.

Our comments center on:

• impacts to at least 144 wetlands and the fish and wildlife using these habitats
• impacts to waterways like Buena Vista Creek and the Fourmile Creek watershed including trout streams
• cumulative effects from nearby solar developments
• foreclosure of habitat restoration work within the project area
• impacts to greater prairie-chickens (a state-threatened species that only lives near the proposed project site) and wildlife habitats,
• impacts from fencing around the solar farm,
• impacts related to agriculture and water quality,
• impacts on recreation like deer hunting,
• lack of detail on reasonable alternatives, including energy impacts if this project were not implemented.

It’s not about solar versus wildlife.

With our aspirational but pragmatic approach, our letter supports clean, renewable energy generation while supporting conservation of biodiversity in Wisconsin by protecting species like the greater prairie-chicken and their habitats.

As we mention in our conclusion:

“WGF recommends modifications be made to the existing project proposal to meet the urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Wisconsin while protecting and promoting ongoing conservation practices on the landscape.”

“This project could be a showcase of transitioning to clean energy and protecting the environment.”

We encourage the WGF community to submit comments to the PSC by 11:59pm June 14, 2024.

The DEIS described in this letter was prepared by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) and Public Service Commission (PSC). In March 2024, we urged the PSC to conduct this DEIS. Our latest comments aim to inform the next step in the process, with recommendations to improve the Final Environmental Impact Statement. (Learn more about the steps in the PSC’s environmental review process here.)

All public comments should reference PSC docket number 9820-CE-100.

1. Email comments to: anna.edmunds@wisconsin.gov
2. Mail comments to: Anna Edmunds, Environmental Review Coordinator, Public Service Commission, P.O. Box 7854. Madison, WI 53707-7854
3. Submit comments electronically at https://psc.wi.gov.
   1. Click on the “File a Public Comment” link under eServices at the bottom of the page.
   2. On the next page select the “File a comment” link that appears on the left side of the page.
   3. Locate the Vista Sands Solar docket (9820-CE-100) and file a comment.

Photos:

1. Greater prairie-chickens by Gregory ‘Slobirdr’ Smith via Flickr
2. Photovoltaic panels, Image by StockSnap from Pixabay