PIPER CITY, Ill. (AP) — In Scott Saffer's science classroom, kids bake cookies in a decked-out kitchen, care for fish, turtles and a snake, and have access...
For a while, due to budgetary concerns in rural Ford County , Illinois , he moved to a neighboring school district . But when wind turbines came to town, Tri-Point had the funding to bring him back without a pay cut. There, he was one of 10 recipients of a prestigious statewide teaching award last year.
Then about 13 years ago, came the funds: about $40,000 a year since then, which has since gone toward new trucks, new equipment and more on-call firefighters. “It was a true benefit to our fire department," he said. Schwegman added, however, that wind development doesn't necessarily change some of the long-term forces affecting rural economies, which have been losing population as people move to cities and suburbs for decades now.
But Marron said the pushback from anti-wind groups was so strong and so polarizing that it took the topic off the table. “As an elected official, I felt constrained to not be able to communicate the benefits of it" because of the political reality, he said. Saffer said called such local moves a “community decision,” one school districts watch closely, knowing they need the money, but can't interfere.
Wind Power Wind Farm Wind Development Scott Saffer Ford County Illinois Illinois Wind Projects School District Local Governments Mike Marron
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