Santa Barbara County’s first commercial wind farm can start operating, although it lacks a key federal permit regarding golden eagles, the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission narrowly decided Wednesday.

However, the commission’s action will require the Strauss Wind Energy Project to follow additional monitoring and reporting rules, including paying $30,000 to a raptor rehabilitation center for any golden eagle injury or death that occurs before a federal permit is secured.

The 27 wind turbine generators making up the Strauss Wind Energy Project sit on a ridge about 4 miles southwest of Lompoc and adjacent to Vandenberg Space Force Base. Planned for two decades, the project would generate enough electricity for 40,000 homes. 

The commissioners voted 3-2 to tweak conditions for the project, with chairman John Parke joined by colleagues C. Michael Cooney and Laura Bridley voting in favor of allowing the wind farm to begin operating with additional conditions. 

“I think that day has come where we as a society are obligated to see what we can do to develop alternative sources of energy. This is one before us with contracts in place ready to go, and I don’t want to slow that process,” Cooney said. “My bottom-line conviction is the project needs to go forward.”

Bridley said the complex issue requires balancing between the effects of wind turbines on wildlife and the effects of climate change.

“I’m very clear that this is a trade-off between two noble goals of saving wildlife versus getting wind energy on the grid,” Bridley said.

Parke noted that the project’s initial approval included an adaptive management plan that calls for the re-evaluation of conditions if two golden eagles die because of the spinning turbines. 

“This goes light years beyond the silly little effort that the feds have to mitigate eagle losses, and who knows what the state’s going to do,” Parke said. “We’re doing a lot to protect eagles.”

Strauss also will be required to conduct searches for eagle carcasses on one-third of the site weekly, not every other week, and must commit to pursuing federal and state permits.

Commissioners Larry Ferini and Vincent Martinez opposed allowing Strauss to operate before obtaining the permit.

“I just can’t back away from the idea that this was a condition from the beginning and remains a condition now,” Martinez said.  

Securing that permit could be lengthy, spanning one to three years, according to some estimates.

Last month, BayWa r.e. Wind LLC asked the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission to allow the turbines to begin operating although the firm had not acquired an incidental take permit from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. 

The commissioners also will require regular updates on the Strauss efforts to secure the federal permit.

The topic became more complicated by a new state law that may apply to the Strauss project and require the similar permit.

While this month’s meeting was expected to be brief, the discussion spanned several hours on Wednesday as opponents and supporters spoke out about the request. 

Andy Caldwell, executive director for the Coalition of Labor, Agriculture & Business,  contended that granting Strauss permission to operate without the golden eagle take permit would be improper.

“They screwed up by not applying for that thing for three years,” Caldwell said, calling for the county to conduct a supplemental environmental analysis.

“Just do it by the book,” he said, suggesting that conducting a supplemental EIR would be shorter than if the commission’s action is appealed to the Board of Supervisors and then taken to the court. 

“We’re trying to help them here. We’re not against this project,” he said. “But our members have gotten bludgeoned to death by this county on ESA (Endangered Species Act).”

Santa Barbara Audubon Society members have repeatedly expressed concerns about the wind turbine generators’ effects on birds and bats in the area. 

BayWa attorney Julie Jones maintained that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has never declined to issue an incidental take permit. 

While some critics called for Strauss to use dogs to hunt down any possible eagle carcasses, company representatives noted that the terrain and other protected species such as the Gaviota tarplant could make canines problematic, instead of helpful.

“We do feel that what we put in place is very robust and very appropriate,” BayWa’s Gordon MacDougall said.

Jones also rejected the opponents’ claim that a supplement environmental analysis should occur.

“You have ample evidence in front of you to find that, with the changes proposed, there would be no substantial increase in the severity of the golden eagle impact,” she added.