To the editor,

AES and it’s Isabelle Creek Solar Project offers the fantasy of a big payout, but is delivering a solar junkyard to burden the community. Do not believe AES and its 800+ shell companies care about our community. None of the power produced is intended for the local cooperative.

My biggest concern is lack of ownership of risk by AES. Key to AES dumping ALL the risk on the local community is not purchasing any of the land that this project is being built on. Does it make sense they would install $100 million worth of equipment on land they do not own? Why would they pay more than $,1000 acre to lease land for 30 years, ultimately paying many times the purchase price? Why would AES give away tens of millions of dollars in profit? The answer, by leasing AES is dumping ANY risk with failure of the project on the landowners, the town, then the county.

How? There are several shell corporations that insulate the parent corporation from any liability. At any point where the project becomes a burden, they can just bankrupt the shell corporation and walk away. Leaving the clean-up, which could be tens of millions of dollars, to the local community. A drop in the price of electricity, a tornado, hail storm or fire converts the fantasy of renewable energy into a 550-acre solar wasteland.

Polite community members may not want to get involved, but everyone in Pierce County should be concerned. When the construction prematurely destroys the roads, Pierce County residents will be burdened with the problem. When the Isabelle Creek Solar Farm corporation closes its doors, Pierce County residents will be left with the bill to decommission and clean-up the mess.

AES promises grand payment to the town and county but, those are just offsetting payments from the STATE for lost tax income and those have no guarantee. If AES decides to shut off production, for any reason, those payments stop.

Do some simple research, get informed and don’t be fooled by the fantasy of a big payout!

Michael Petersen

Town of Hartland