The Coastal Habitat Alliance (CHA) filed lawsuits in federal and state courts to obtain regulatory review of an industrial wind power project planned for Kenedy County on the Gulf Coast of Texas.
The federal suit challenges the state's decision to allow the developments to be built without environmental review and public input, according to CHA. Both the Federal Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) of 1972 and the Texas Coastal Management Program require permitting of any energy generation facility on the coast, including wind farms.
The federal lawsuit seeks declaratory judgment and, if needed, an injunction against Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, the Texas Public Utility commissioners and the developers of the proposed wind project under the (CZMA).
The federal suit seeks a declaratory judgment that no wind energy facility can be built within the Texas coastal zone without a permit as is represented in the current federally approved state Coastal Management Program.
The state lawsuit claims that the Public Utility Commission illegally denied the CHA's request for intervenor status in the commission's permit hearings for the wind project's transmission line. The state suit argues that Texas law provides for intervention by property owners and environmental groups.
