Community Benefit Agreements
Wind Energy Community Benefits Database
This searchable database reflects community benefit agreements (CBAs), community benefit funds, donations, and other forms of benefits from land-based and offshore wind energy developments in the U.S. compiled by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) from 2022 to 2024.
If you would like to submit a CBA that is not represented in this database, please email windcommunitybenefits@nrel.gov .
For more information about how community benefits are developed and the role they play in wind energy development, please visit the Wind Energy Community Benefits Guide. Learn more about the community impacts of wind farms.What Forms of Community Benefits Does This Database Include?
Community benefits for wind energy projects can be structured in many ways, but the following categories are the most common and are the focus of this database:
Project Name
|
State
|
County
|
Form of Benefit
|
Additional Form
|
Infrastructure Type
|
Number of Turbines
|
Generating Capacity (MW)
|
Year Built
|
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Diamond Vista | Kansas | Marion County | Fund | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 95 | 299 | 2018 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Enel Green Power
SourcesVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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Deuel Harvest North | South Dakota | Deuel County | Fund | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 109 | 301 | 2021 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Invenergy / Southern Power
SourcesVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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Bull Hill | Maine | Hancock County | Formal agreement | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 19 | 34 | 2012 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by First Wind / Terraform Power
SourceVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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Crocker | South Dakota | Clark County | Fund | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 77 | 200 | 2019 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Geronimo Energy
SourcesVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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Blue Creek | Ohio | Van Wert County, Paulding County | Fund | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 152 | 304 | 2012 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Iberdrola
SourcesVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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Apple Blossom | Michigan | Huron County | Fund | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 29 | 100 | 2017 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Geronimo Energy / Huron Wind / Sempra Renewables / AEP
SourcesVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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Aurora | North Dakota | Williams County | Fund | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 71 | 299 | 2021 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Tradewind Energy / Enel Green Power
SourcesVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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Bingham Wind | Maine | Somerset County, Piscataquis County | Formal agreement | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 56 | 185 | 2016 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Novatus Energy / Onward Energy / First Wind / TerraForm Power
'- First Wind provided scholarships for students in the locations of its projects while the company was still operating. SourceVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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Black Oak Getty | Minnesota | Steams County | Fund | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 39 | 82 | 2016 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Geronimo Energy / Sempra Renewables / AEP
SourcesVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
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East Fork | Kansas | Thomas County | Fund | Donation/support to local cause | Land-based wind energy project | 72 | 195.8 | 2020 |
Developed, Owned, or Operated by ENGIE
SourcesVerified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024 |
What Forms of Community Benefits Are Not Included in This Database?
CBAs and related forms of community benefits may be provided alongside other agreements or economic impacts that serve different purposes, such as:
- Land lease payments to landowners that host wind turbines.
- Project labor agreements for construction of wind energy projects.
- Taxes or tax agreements like payment in lieu of taxes (PILOTs).
- Direct compensation to impacted stakeholders, such as commercial fishermen.
This database does not include these other types of wind energy benefits, as they differ from CBAs and related benefit mechanisms in several key ways; namely, the community benefits included in this database are unrelated to taxation, are intended to provide benefits to the community as a whole rather than a specific group of people, like landowners, and are separate from impact mitigation measures required by permitting agencies.