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1 | | municipality prior to the effective date of this Act. |
2 | | "Commercial wind energy operator" means a private |
3 | | commercial enterprise that owns or operates a wind energy |
4 | | facility of equal to or greater than 500 kilowatts in total |
5 | | nameplate capacity. |
6 | | "Commission" means the Illinois Commerce Commission. |
7 | | "Deconstruction" means the removal of a wind energy |
8 | | generation facility from the property of a landowner and the |
9 | | restoration of that property as provided in the agricultural |
10 | | impact mitigation agreement. |
11 | | "Department" means the Illinois Department of Agriculture. |
12 | | "Landowner" means any person with an ownership interest in |
13 | | property (i) that is used for agricultural purposes and (ii) |
14 | | that is party to an underlying agreement. |
15 | | "Underlying agreement" means the written or oral agreement |
16 | | with a landowner including, but not limited to, an easement, |
17 | | option, lease, or license, under the terms of which another |
18 | | person has constructed, constructs, or intends to construct a |
19 | | commercial wind energy facility on the property of the |
20 | | landowner. |
21 | | "Wind turbine" means a wind turbine of equal to or greater |
22 | | than 500 kilowatts in total nameplate generating capacity. |
23 | | Section 15. Agricultural impact mitigation agreement. |
24 | | (a) An owner or operator of a commercial wind energy |
25 | | facility located on landowner property shall enter into an |
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1 | | agricultural impact mitigation agreement with the Department |
2 | | outlining construction and deconstruction standards and |
3 | | policies designed to preserve the integrity of any agricultural |
4 | | land that is impacted by commercial wind energy facility |
5 | | construction and deconstruction. This requirement does not |
6 | | apply to commercial wind energy facilities already constructed |
7 | | or permitted by decision of a county or municipality prior to |
8 | | the effective date of this Act. |
9 | | (b) The agricultural impact mitigation agreement shall |
10 | | address such items as access roads, construction staging and |
11 | | storage areas, excavation and backfill, protection of |
12 | | agricultural drainage tiles, wind turbine foundations, wind |
13 | | turbine erection, restoration of agricultural land affected by |
14 | | all construction and deconstruction, indemnification of |
15 | | landowners, monitoring, and remediation. |
16 | | (c) The agricultural impact mitigation agreement shall be |
17 | | entered into prior to the construction of the commercial wind |
18 | | energy facility. The agricultural impact mitigation agreement |
19 | | is binding on any subsequent wind energy operator that takes |
20 | | ownership of the commercial wind energy facility that is the |
21 | | subject of the agreement. |
22 | | (d) The Department shall adopt rules that are necessary and |
23 | | appropriate for the implementation and administration of |
24 | | agricultural impact mitigation agreements as required under |
25 | | this Act. |
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1 | | Section 20. Deconstruction activities. |
2 | | (a) The commercial wind energy operator is responsible for |
3 | | deconstruction of the commercial wind energy facility and for |
4 | | all costs associated with deconstruction of that facility and |
5 | | associated facilities. |
6 | | (b) A commercial wind energy facility is presumed to be at |
7 | | the end of its useful life if (i) the commercial wind energy |
8 | | operator fails, for a period of 18 consecutive months, to |
9 | | operate a commercial wind facility for the purpose of which it |
10 | | was designed and installed and (ii) the commercial wind energy |
11 | | operator fails, for a period of 6 consecutive months, to pay |
12 | | the landowner moneys owed to him or her in accordance with the |
13 | | underlying agreement. |
14 | | (c) The commercial wind energy operator shall begin |
15 | | deconstruction of the commercial wind energy facility within 8 |
16 | | months after the time the facility or turbine reaches the end |
17 | | of its useful life. Deconstruction must be completed within 18 |
18 | | months after the commercial wind energy facility reaches the |
19 | | end of its useful life. |
20 | | (d) No less than 120 days prior to the beginning of |
21 | | construction, owners or operators of commercial wind energy |
22 | | facilities shall file with the Commission a plan that includes: |
23 | | (1) a copy of the agricultural impact mitigation |
24 | | agreement entered into by the owner or operator and the |
25 | | Department; |
26 | | (2) the estimated deconstruction cost per turbine, in |
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1 | | current dollars at the time of filing, for the proposed |
2 | | commercial wind energy facility; and |
3 | | (3) a comprehensive detailed description describing |
4 | | how the commercial wind energy owner or operator plans to |
5 | | pay for the deconstruction of the commercial wind energy |
6 | | facility. |
7 | | The plan shall be prepared by an independent third party at |
8 | | the commercial wind energy operator's expense. The plan may be |
9 | | filed in separate portions, each also no less than 120 days |
10 | | prior to construction, involving each phase in which the |
11 | | commercial wind energy facility is to be constructed, if the |
12 | | facility is to be constructed in phases commencing at periods |
13 | | of more than one year following each other. The Commission |
14 | | shall enter an order approving, modifying, or disapproving that |
15 | | plan. |
16 | | (e) No less than 120 days prior to the beginning of |
17 | | construction of any commercial wind energy facility, the |
18 | | commercial wind energy owner or operator shall file with the |
19 | | Commission a reclamation bond that is acceptable to the |
20 | | Commission to cover the anticipated costs of deconstruction of |
21 | | the commercial wind energy facility or any turbine thereon. The |
22 | | reclamation bond shall not release the surety from liability |
23 | | until the bond is replaced. In determining the anticipated |
24 | | costs of deconstruction, the Commission shall take into |
25 | | account, among other things, the information provided under |
26 | | subsection (d), the number of wind turbines and related |
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1 | | commercial wind energy facilities involved, the original |
2 | | construction costs of the commercial wind energy facilities, |
3 | | the size and capacity of the wind turbines, the salvage value |
4 | | of the commercial wind energy facilities, and the construction |
5 | | method and techniques for the turbines and other commercial |
6 | | wind energy facilities. The Commission shall examine the |
7 | | reclamation bond and enter an order approving, modifying, or |
8 | | rejecting the reclamation bond. The Commission shall |
9 | | reevaluate the anticipated costs of deconstruction of any |
10 | | commercial wind energy facility every 5 years after its initial |
11 | | assessment or if there is a change in commercial wind energy |
12 | | facility's owner, operator, or reclamation bond, and, based on |
13 | | any reevaluation, require changes in the level of reclamation |
14 | | bond required from the commercial wind energy facility owner or |
15 | | operator. If the Commission is unable to its satisfaction to |
16 | | perform any investigations necessary to enter an order |
17 | | approving any deconstruction plan filed by a commercial wind |
18 | | energy facility owner or operator, then the Commission may |
19 | | select persons independent of the commercial wind energy |
20 | | facility owner or operator to conduct any necessary |
21 | | investigations and the commercial wind energy facility owner or |
22 | | operator shall bear the cost of any such investigations. |
23 | | (f) If the commercial wind energy operator does not |
24 | | complete deconstruction, the Commission may take such action as |
25 | | necessary to complete deconstruction, including drawing upon |
26 | | the financial assurance required in subsection (e). |
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1 | | (g) If there is a change in ownership of the wind energy |
2 | | facility, the commercial wind energy operator assuming |
3 | | ownership of the facility shall provide notice within 30 days |
4 | | to the Commission of such change and the existing financial |
5 | | assurance requirements for the facility as required in |
6 | | subsection (e) will apply to the new operator. |
7 | | (h) The Commission has no authority or responsibility for
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8 | | commercial wind facilities that have already been constructed |
9 | | or
permitted by decision of a county or municipality prior to |
10 | | the
effective date of this Act.
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11 | | (i) The Commission shall adopt rules that are necessary and |
12 | | appropriate for the implementation and administration of |
13 | | deconstruction activities as required under this Act. |
14 | | (j) In addition to any authority granted the Commission |
15 | | under this Act, the Commission is also authorized to impose |
16 | | reasonable filing fees and penalties. Fees and penalties |
17 | | collected under this Act shall be deposited into the Public |
18 | | Utility Fund and used to fund the Commission's compliance with |
19 | | the obligations imposed by this Section.
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20 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
21 | | becoming law.".
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