Source: Idaho Business Review, by Zach Hagadone
June 09, 2009

Though at times they seemed close to a vote, Elmore County Commissioners backed away on June 8 from making a final decision on Alternate Energy Holdings’ request to rezone 1,300 acres of agricultural land near Hammett to make way for a nuclear power plant.

Commission chairman Larry Rose said he was worried that if the power plant fails to materialize, the county may be opening the door for other – less desirable – developments. Rose and fellow commissioners Connie Cruser and Arlie Shaw agreed to table the discussion until June 15 to give county staff time to determine what, if any, restrictions can be placed on land use at the rezoned site.

“You need to determine if that is a good idea before you twist it around so it can be used for something else,” said Rose, listing a “mega-landfill” or dairy compost plant as developments potentially allowed under an industrial zoning.

Commissioners were also concerned about the infrastructure necessary to accommodate a heavy industrial use, which may include additional police and fire service, electrical transmission and roads, schools, housing and hospitals to serve the influx of workers and their families.

The rezone would convert a swath of land along the Snake River from agricultural to heavy industrial zoning. AEHI, based in Eagle, has proposed to build a 1,600-megawatt advanced nuclear reactor at the site, which the company said would cost around $4.5 billion to build and provide 5,000 jobs.

The Elmore County Planning and Zoning Commission in November recommended rejecting the rezone because it did not comply with the county’s comprehensive plan.

Following the meeting, AEHI representatives said a development agreement already submitted to the county makes it clear that if the power plant is a no-go the land would return to an agricultural zone.  

“If the land isn’t used for a nuclear power plant then it would revert to ag,” said Martin Johncox, a spokesman for the company. “AEHI [has] made that clear, but the commissioners apparently need more clarification.”

AEHI CEO Don Gillispie underscored the point in a statement issued later in the afternoon.

“The move today puzzles us because we have submitted a development agreement with our application that addresses their concerns,” he stated. “If we do not develop a nuclear power plant on this site, we have agreed that it should revert back to agricultural zoning.”

When commissioners reconvene on June 15 they will address whether the rezone conflicts with the county’s comprehensive plan and the impact of the rezone on public services. Commissioner Shaw was keen to separate the proposed nuclear plant from the rezone request.

“I want it really clear that no matter what we decide on this rezone … it has nothing to do with what’s put there or not put there,” he said. “This is strictly the rezone; I’m not making any decision about whether I’m for or against any kind of project that could go on that ground.”

Passions have run high since AEHI first proposed its Idaho Energy Complex power plant in Owyhee County over a year ago. Moving the project to Elmore County last year, opponents of the rezone have said siting an industrial development on the property in question would overtax water supplies, potentially threaten water quality and disrupt the agricultural character of the area.

Supporters and AEHI company representatives have countered that their advanced “dry” reactor design would use far less water than conventional reactors, waste would be handled and processed safely, and that the development would provide jobs, a boost to the tax base and provide cheap energy.

Commissioner Cruser said at the June 8 meeting that she has received phone messages saying she should “be very careful” how she votes, and that she’d “be sorry” if she voted a certain way. She did not share which direction the caller or callers were trying to sway her. The county prosecutor asked her to report any future threats.

The June 15 meeting will be held at the Elmore County Courthouse, 150 S. 4th East in Mountain Home, at 9 a.m. Testimony will not be taken.