Tres Vaqueros Windfarm Repowering Project

Tres Vaqueros Windfarm Repowering Project

The project applicant, Tres Vaqueros Windfarms, LLC, proposes the following: " Removal of 85 330kW ad 1,750kW Howden wind turbines with a combined generating capacity of approximately 28.3 megawatts. Existing foundations would be covered with at least 1.5 feet of soil and seeded with native species. Reclaimed turbine areas would be returned to annual grassland habitat for agricultural use. " Installation of up to 42 megawatt, or similar size, wind turbines. The total height of the model currently proposed is between 282 and 315 feet - the range resulting from different tower height options. The final model and height would be determined based on the conclusions of the EIR and considerations relating to model availability. " Construction of approximately 70,000 feet (13.25 miles) of new access roads and reclamation or modification of a similar amount of existing site and turbine access roads. During construction, new access roads leading to the turbine sites would be up to 30 feet wide depending upon specific turns and required turning radii. Following construction, permanent site access and turbine maintenance roads would be 16 to 20 feet wide to accommodate maintenance vehicles. " Replacement of all existing above-ground electrical collection systems with below-ground lines. The underground transmission system would terminate at the existing substation, which connects the windfarms to a 230kV PG&E transmission line running adjacent to the project area. The "repowered" facility's energy production capability would be 3 to 4 times greater than the output capability of the existing facility. The actual "footprint" of turbine pads, foundations, underground collection facilities, the maintenance facility, and the substation would be about 44 acres, representing a 3-acre reduction from the existing facility.

Byron

Contra Costa

California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Energy Commission, California Highway Patrol, California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC), California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Sacramento Region 5 (RWQCB), Department of Toxic Substances Control, Department of Water Resources, Resources Agency, California Department of Transportation, District 4 (DOT), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Bay Delta Region 3 (CDFW)

California Department of Transportation, District 4 (DOT), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Bay Delta Region 3 (CDFW)

Power:Wind (Megawatts up to 42)

Use Permit

Aesthetics, Agriculture and Forestry Resources, Air Quality, Biological Resources, Cultural Resources, Cumulative Effects, Drainage/Absorption, Flood Plain/Flooding, Geology/Soils, Growth Inducement, Hazards & Hazardous Materials, Hydrology/Water Quality, Land Use/Planning, Mineral Resources, Noise, Population/Housing, Public Services, Recreation, Schools/Universities, Septic System, Sewer Capacity, Solid Waste, Transportation, Vegetation, Wetland/Riparian, Wildfire, Greenhouse Gases