Court snuffs wind code appeals

A pair of appeals of Whitman County’s industrial wind farm zoning ordinance were dismissed by Superior Court Judge David Frazier last Wednesday, April 7.

Frazier granted Prosecutor Denis Tracy’s motion to throw out appeals of County Planner Alan Thomson’s ruling that the ordinance would not have a significant negative environmental impact.

The appeals were filed by Roger Whitten of Oakesdale and Carolyn Kiesz of Thornton. Both were outspoken critics of industrial wind farms throughout the two-year process of crafting the ordinance.

“It’s a speed bump in the road for me,” said Kiesz. “I’ve lost...