Whitman County has officially requested comment on the proposed amendment’s to it’s industrial wind code. Please view the proposed changes here, and submit your comments to [email protected].
View the Proposed Code on Whitman County’s Website
Whitman County Planning issued a Determination of Non-significance (DNS) under the State Environmental Policy Act Rules (Chapter 197-11 WAC) for the following project:
Whitman County proposes a revision to Whitman County Code Chapter 19.61 Commercial Wind Energy Facilities.
After review of a completed environmental checklist and other information on file with us, the Planning Office has determined that this proposal will not have a probable significant adverse impact on the environment.
A public hearing on this revised ordinance will be held by the Whitman County Planning Commission on December 17, 2025, in the Auditorium, first floor of the Whitman County Public Service Building, at 6:00 PM.
Copies of the DNS are available at no charge from the Planning Office, Whitman County Public Service Building (2nd Floor), N. 310 Main St., Colfax, WA 99111. Interested persons may submit environmentally-focused written comments by email, regular mail, or hand-delivered on the SEPA decision by 5 p.m. on Thursday, December 11, 2025. General comments on the proposed zoning amendments can be submitted up to 5:00 PM on Wednesday, December 17, 2025 to the County Planning Office, P.O. Box 430, Colfax, WA 99111-0430, or email to [email protected]. The SEPA decision can be accessed at https://whitmancounty.gov/743/Commercial-Wind-Ordinance-Review
I grew up in Colfax. The Palouse is a sacred place. Its beauty should not be marred by wind turbines. It should be treated like an ancient, old growth forest is treated – hands off.
The finding of no environmental impact for a proposed wind farm on the Palouse is astounding. The scope of this project has not been fully disclosed to the public as eventually this project is planned to encompass acreage extending across the Palouse toward the communities of Colton and Uniontown ( see phase 1-4 plan). My concern is the lack of evidence that these structures are necessary and safe in a drought affected area where fires are common. I don’t know of anyone who sees the miles of wind farms, already prevalent, throughout the state and world, and doesn’t think that they are a blight. They will forever destroy the natural beauty and peace of this region. Please stop this project.
We purchased our home in 2022 in rural Whitman County so that we could enjoy the serenity, views and peace that is abundant here. Little to our knowledge, the first discussion of this was quietly already happening. Previous owner sold and took the top $ for our home without any discussion of this fight that had already started.
Now, we sit with all of the farmland around us in the Harvest Hills lease. This would greatly impact our property values, quality of life, quality of views and our overall reason for moving to this community.
While I do agree that landowners should be able to do as they wish with their property, who is at fault when their decisions impact the quality of life and values of those around you? Who is responsible for the financial impacts and medical impacts to quality of life? (the company who is putting them in or the landowners themselves? Or both?
My Grandfather was a farmer in Washington. His town grew around his farm and he was stopped from putting in a pig farm because of the impact to his neighbors. This is 100x worse impact to our lives and our county does not have our back. Please stop this project.
What on earth are the people on the planning commission thinking. Is there going to be money exchanged for this finding? Did you ever take into consideration what the neighboring land owners thoughts are? Or perhaps the residents of towns in close proximity? How about the environmental issues pertaining to soil erosion? What you will do with the worn out windmills and blades, and the land they sit on after their lifespan has expired?
I’m not against green energy if it is put in places that don’t affect people and their livelihoods. The areas around Whitman County are not appropriate. Our area is known for its rolling hills, beautiful landscapes, productive farming, and peaceful living. People come from all over the world to photograph and visit our unspoiled countryside. Vacation nearby bringing in revenue for our small businesses. They will stop coming and more of our businesses will close once these monstrosities are built. They will destroy farmland, wild animals, people’s health and more. Their income production will not be felt in our are as it is such a small amount compared to the overall picture of things. Would you want to live within seeing distance if one of the ugly things? Well I sure don’t. Put them where they won’t affect our visual, hearing and sight senses.
Commissioners, please work for the people that you’re supposed to and not the companies that fill your pockets. The people that have lived here all or most of their lives and voted you in deserve your support. Those that don’t live here only care about themselves. You can make a difference and keep Whitman County the special place it is.
These will not only negatively impact the beauty of the Palouse, but the local economy in a negative way again. I’ve not ran into a single local resident who is in favor of the wind farm.
Put wind turbines in towns. They don’t want to see it. This keep going after littering our farm grounds. Wind turbine developers clip the government. They are not cost effective. Again. Start sticking them in towns.