Biglow Canyon Wind Power Plant is an electricity generating wind farm facility in Sherman County, Oregon, United States. Biglow Canyon Wind Power Plant is owned by Portland, Oregon, based Portland General Electric and began operations in 2007. With the completion of phase 3 of the project it has a generating capacity of 450 megawatts. It is located roughly five miles (8 km) northeast of Wasco, Oregon,^[1] and about ten miles (16 km) southeast of Rufus, Oregon. Biglow Canyon Wind Farm covers 25,000 acres (100 km²) in the Columbia River Gorge.

Operations of Biglow Canyon Wind Power Plant

The Biglow Canyon Wind Power Planthas an installed capacity of 275 megawatts. Additional phases, planned for construction in 2009 and 2010, are expected to bring its total generating capacity to between 400 and 450 megawatts. The site covers 25,000 acres (100 km²) in Sherman County. The wind farm uses a feeder transmission line from the canyon to high-voltage transmission lines via a power substation located near The Dalles. PGE does not own this line. Additionally, the line connects this and other wind farms to the Bonneville Power Administration run power grid built for use with the hydroelectric dams on the Columbia River.

Certification of Biglow Canyon Wind Power Plant

The Biglow Canyon Wind Power Plant facility is authorized to install up to 225 wind turbines totaling 450 MW and averaging 150 MW distributed over 25,000 acres (100 km²). Each turbine's supporting tower must be 265–280 feet (81–85 m) tall; combined with windmill blades, each unit may be 400–445 feet (120–136 m) in height. The turbines may be aligned in up to 30 corridors 500 feet (150 m) wide on private farmland leased from the appropriate landowners. The initial construction—termed phase I—provides a completed capacity of 125 MW or enough to power 34,000 homes. Phase I cost some $250 million. Energy Trust of Oregon, Inc. contributed $6 million.

Turbine output is around 600 VAC and is converted to 34.5 kV by a transformer at the base of each tower. The output is gathered by a substation which combines the individual turbine contributions. Most collector cabling and associated control and monitoring fiber optic cable (up to 99 miles) is buried 3 feet (0.91 m) underground. Exceptions are made for aerial cables to span terrain such as canyons, wetlands, and cultivated areas to protect the environment. Up to 15 miles (24 km) of aerial cabling is permitted. Bonneville Power Administration built a 12 mile 230 kV transmission line to collect the power. It has capacity for an expected additional 450 MW from two other proposed wind farms in Sherman County.

The substation may be up to 6 acres (24,000 m²) including transformers, switching equipment, maintenance shops, control room, and offices. As many as ten meteorological observation towers up to 279 ft (85 m) are allowed throughout the wind farm to collect wind resource data. Construction must be completed by June 30, 2011.

Visual impact restrictions are in force for the John Day Wildlife Refuge, John Day Wild and Scenic River, and the John Day State Scenic Waterway (from Parish Creek to Tumwater Falls). Wildlife protection must be provided for nesting bald eagles, peregrine falcons, Swainson's hawk, golden eagle, Burrowing owl, Ferruginous hawk and minimization of harm to other wildlife. Noise levels during construction and operation of the facility must not contribute more than 50 dBA at 24 identified noise sensitive sites.

Biglow Canyon Wind Farm
Locale	Sherman County, Oregon, United States
Coordinates	45°38′15″N 120°36′19″W / 45.6375°N 120.60528°W / 45.6375; -120.60528Coordinates: 45°38′15″N 120°36′19″W / 45.6375°N 120.60528°W / 45.6375; -120.60528
Status	Operational
Owner(s)	Portland General Electric
Power station information
Primary fuel	Wind farm
Power generation information
Installed capacity	450 megawatts