The county board is scheduled to make its final decision on the environmental assessment for the 200-MW Pleasant Valley Wind Farm at 10:15 a.m. during Tuesday’s county board meeting.

On Dec. 17, 2013, the board unanimously accepted a draft of the environmental assessment for a substation and transmission line for the Pleasant Valley Wind Farm Project near Dexter, Sargeant and into Dodge County.

The draft was published by  the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board earlier this month, and there was a period for comments.

If the board approves the assessment, the board will next hold hearings on conditional use permits for the transmission line and substation, likely on Feb. 25.

The 100 2-MW turbines are already approved by the state, but the Mower County board is the permitting authority for the transmission line for the transmission line and substation for the project. Comments regarding the towers will not be addressed in the environmental assessment.

RES America plans to begin building the wind farm next spring, and the wind farm should be completed by October 2015. RES Americas will build an operations and maintenance facility that will likely be located in Sargeant. Once completed, Xcel Energy will purchase the wind farm.