N.J. Admin. Code § 7:7-6.26

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024

Section 7:7-6.26 - General permit 26 - construction of wind turbines less than 250 feet in height and having a cumulative rotor swept area no greater than 20,000 square feet

(a) This general permit authorizes the construction of wind turbines less than 250 feet in height, measured from the ground surface to the tip of the blade at its highest position, and having a cumulative rotor swept area no greater than 20,000 square feet provided:

1. No portion of the wind turbine(s), including blades, tower and site disturbance, shall be located in, on or over dunes, beaches, wetlands, coastal bluffs, or wild and scenic river corridors;

2. No wind turbine tower(s) or site disturbance shall be located in floodways;

3. The wind turbine(s), including blades, tower and site disturbance, is set back a minimum of 50 feet, as measured parallel to the ground:

i. Landward of the mean high water line and the inland limit of any beach or dune. This setback does not apply to manmade lagoons and manmade ditches; and

ii. From the boundary of any wetlands;

4. No portion of the wind turbine(s), including blades, tower, and site disturbance shall be located within:

i. An area mapped as threatened or endangered species habitat on the Department's Landscape Maps of Habitat for Endangered, Threatened and Other Priority Wildlife (Landscape Maps). The Landscape Maps are available from the Department's Division of Fish and Wildlife, Endangered and Nongame Species Program at http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/ensp/landscape/index.htm;

ii. An area identified on the Department's Large Scale Wind Turbine Siting Map, dated August 8, 2009, incorporated by reference into this chapter. The Department's Large Scale Wind Turbine Siting Map is available on the Department's interactive mapping website at http://www.nj.gov/dep/gis; or

iii. One-quarter mile of an area identified on the Department's Large Scale Wind Turbine Siting Map;

5. The wind turbine(s) shall comply with N.J.A.C. 7:7-9.37, Critical wildlife habitats;

6. Development under this general permit shall not result in construction of turbines with a cumulative rotor swept area greater than 20,000 square feet on a site, either solely or in conjunction with a previous wind turbine development;

7. If the wind turbine(s) is more than 120 feet tall, measured from the ground surface to the tip of the blade at its highest position, the tower shall be a freestanding monopole(s);

8. No lighting shall be placed on or directed at the wind turbine except that lighting required by the Federal Aviation Administration and shielded ground level security lighting may be used. Lighting is shielded when it is covered in a way that light rays are not emitted above the horizontal plane of the light; and

9. In order to assess the impact of the operation of wind turbines authorized under this coastal general permit on avian species and bats, post-construction monitoring shall be required. The monitoring shall be conducted for one full year beginning immediately after the wind turbines begin operation and shall include bird and bat carcass searches as well as removal and efficiency trials. The monitoring methodology shall be approved by the Department prior to initiation and a complete report of findings submitted to the Department within three months of completion of the monitoring. The Department has prepared a technical manual titled, "Technical Manual for Evaluating Wildlife Impacts of Wind Turbines Requiring Coastal Permits," which provides guidance on monitoring and reporting. The technical manual is available from the Department's Division of Land Use Regulation website http://www.nj.gov/dep/landuse.

(b) In accordance with NJ.A.C. 7:7-3.8(b), the Department may add a special condition to an authorization under this general permit, that would curtail the operation of the wind turbines as directed by the Department pursuant to (b)1 below, during peak spring (April through June) and fall (August through November) migration periods when migrating birds or bats would likely be flying at the height of the rotor swept area or be present at seasonally high densities throughout the entire air column. Such curtailment shall not exceed 360 hours in a calendar year per turbine that occurs within the normal range of operation of the turbine. Curtailment measures include establishing a minimum wind speed that must be achieved prior to starting operations and shutting down operations during certain weather conditions or migratory events. Weather conditions that may necessitate curtailment include low wind speeds, low altitude cloud cover, strong storms, or approaching weather fronts favorable to bird or bat migration (such as southerly winds in the spring or northwest winds in the fall). Migratory events that may necessitate curtailment include high concentrations of migrating birds and bats using the coastal area (for example, high concentrations of shorebirds making daily flights between coastal feeding areas, such as mudflats, and roosting areas during spring migration).

1. Limitations on operation shall be developed by the Department based on monitoring results and published and unpublished studies or data. The Department shall notify the permittee in writing of the operational limitations by March 15th of the first year curtailment is required during the spring migration and by July 15th of the first year curtailment is required during the fall migration. These operational limitations shall remain in effect unless the Department notifies the permittee in writing by the above dates in subsequent years that changes to operational limitations are required. This information shall also be made available on the Department's website at http://www.nj.gov/dep/landuse.

N.J. Admin. Code § 7:7-6.26

Renumbered from 7:7-7.31 by 47 N.J.R. 1392(a), effective 7/6/2015

Administrative Change, 51 N.J.R. 1193(a).