Another wind farm referendum to be held in a week in Czechia's Vysočina region

Another referendum on wind farms will be held in Vysočina in a week. Residents of Počátky in the Pelhřimov district will vote on the issue. If they vote against the project, it will bring to a halt several years of preparations for construction at a site beyond Strážný Hill, where four turbines could be built, the town’s mayor, Karel Štefl, told the Czech News Agency. The town has 2,500 residents.

The referendum was initiated by opponents of the construction, who argue primarily that it would harm the character of the landscape. They want residents to say whether they agree that the town council, acting within the municipality’s autonomous powers, should take steps towards building wind farms in the cadastral area of Počátky and its local districts of Heřmaneč, Horní Vilímeč, Léskovec, Prostý and Vesce.

The council then added a question asking whether residents agree with building wind farms beyond Strážný Hill, provided they bring financial benefits to the town of Počátky. Štefl said residents could choose between two income options. A fixed payment would bring in around one million crowns per turbine each year. Once potential electricity output had been measured, the town could also opt for a model with a lower fixed payment and a share in the revenue based on the price at which the electricity is sold.

W.E.B. plans to build the turbines. The company would take advantage of the nearby substation, which has spare capacity to connect them to the grid. It previously conducted a public survey, but the results were inconclusive. Of the 135 respondents, 60 supported building the turbines.

Earlier this year, residents voted on wind farm construction in the Vysočina municipalities of Jamné and Dalečín. In both cases, they voted against it. In Sazomín, where a referendum was held last May, residents supported preparations to build three wind turbines. “We still don’t know what will happen with the turbines. The investor is probably dealing with access roads and other matters. No building permit has been issued either,” Sazomín Mayor Lucie Pešková told the Czech News Agency today.

Residents of Počátky will be able to vote on 8 November from 12:00 to 20:00 at two polling stations. There are around 2,000 eligible voters.

For a local referendum to be valid, at least 35 percent of eligible voters must take part. Its decision is binding if it is supported by a majority of those eligible who participate in the referendum, and by at least 25 percent of all eligible voters.