DANVILLE — Members of the Vermilion County Board will hear Thursday night from a Rankin-area couple who believe the county's wind turbine ordinance should be changed.

Vermilion County Board Chairman Jim McMahon said Darrell and Kim Cambron will make a presentation to the county board's executive committee.

McMahon said he has set aside 45 minutes for the Cambrons to express their viewpoints on the ordinance itself. He said afterward, the committee won't be debating much at that time, but the information will be taken into consideration by the county's legal counsel Bill Donahue. McMahon said Donahue will decide whether the county has the authority to make some of the changes and then will bring back official recommendations to the executive committee at a later date.

There are four proposed wind turbine projects in Vermilion County, but the Hoopeston Wind Project, a 40-plus turbine wind farm proposed west of Rossville, would affect the Cambron property. Developers on that project had already submitted its application for permits to the county board, but the project has now been delayed due to infrastructure issues with electrical transmission lines.

In the absence of a countywide zoning system, the county approved a couple years ago an ordinance specifically addressing the construction of wind turbines in the county and created a structural safety committee that must review each wind turbine project and ensure it meets certain requirements. McMahon said the county would not consider making any changes that would affect whether landowners should or should not lease their land.

The executive committee meets at 4:30 p.m. Thursday in the Vermilion County Courthouse Annex, 6 N. Vermilion St., Danville.

Kim Cambron said the county needs to revisit its wind ordinance, revise and strengthen it. She said the ordinance needs to be done the right way and done now. She said the changes they want would not only be about protecting themselves but anyone in proximity to wind turbines, including those who are leasing their land.

Cambron said one of the recommendations they will make will be increasing the setback, the distance between the turbines and nearby structures or properties. Currently, the county's ordinance, which was written with input from wind development officials, has a 1,000-foot setback.

But the Cambrons plan to discuss research and instances in other counties and states that support greater setbacks due to noise and shadow flicker from the turbines. Iroquois County had a 1,000-foot setback but is now pursuing increasing that to 2,000 feet.

Cambron said there's also a threat to wildlife that they will discuss with the executive committee.

She said she knows that's not a popular issue but it is a real issue, and they plan to recommend that the ordinance include a requirement for an "incidental take" permit, which would allow the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to monitor whether there's any affect from the turbines on wildlife.

In a letter to the county, the state agency recommended that the developers of the Hoopeston Wind Project seek an incidental take authorization for the Indiana Bat, which is on federal and state endangered lists. According to the letter, a migrating Indiana bat that had sustained multiple-blunt force injuries was recovered from beneath a turbine near Benton County in Indiana. The bat occurs in summer colonies in Vermilion County, and migrates through the area, according to the letter.

"Potential conflict with this species should be carefully considered," the letter stated.

The department also made several recommendations in regard to the project's possible impact to wildlife, stating that the county may want to consider requiring the applicant, or wind farm developer, to monitor certain conditions.

The recommendations include requiring the company to evaluate risks to endangered or threatened species, seek permits for incidental taking of protected animals, perform at least one year of post-construction monitoring and assessment, noting any changes in wildlife patterns and evaluating causes of changes and periodically repeating such assessments throughout the life of the project.