Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg ignored safety reports and pushed forward to approve potentially dangerous windmill projects, reported the New York Post.
An unnamed current department official verified that windmill projects received Buttigieg's approval despite him knowing that safety and hazard reports were on file.
At least 33 safety recommendations to place windmills away from critical infrastructure were reportedly overruled in 2023 and 2024, letting construction go ahead in areas where the windmills could interfere with radio communications systems.
One example the Post reported involved an Illinois project in 2023 where the Commerce Department initially said the proposed windmill locations presented an undue risk of interfering with train communications.
But nine months later, the concerns were withdrawn, and the Transportation Department issued a statement indicating it reserved the right to make setback recommendations or any other recommendations deemed necessary by the department.
The Post report pointed to the switch happening at the time the Biden administration was giving the green light to hundreds of billions of dollars in energy tax credits for wind power projects using money from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.
In mid-July, the Trump administration issued a notice that it was "ending preferential treatment for unreliable, subsidy-dependent wind and solar energy." It went on to indicate that all wind and solar projects involving government financial support of any type would face an elevated level of scrutiny to ensure "evaluations are thorough and deliberative."
This followed a July 7 executive order from President Donald Trump that ends "subsidies for unreliable green energy sources like wind and solar."
Jim Mishler ✉
Jim Mishler, a seasoned reporter, anchor and news director, has decades of experience covering crime, politics and environmental issues.
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