Jasper Energy LLC & Chautauqua Wind Power LLC

You may ask yourself how a company can be an issue when it comes to Wind Power. Hopefully, what follows will explain why these companies have us concerened. A financial history of Jasper Energy LLC / Chautauqua Wind Power LLC describes the history of this company, starting in 1993, from filings made to the Securities & Exchange Commission. This document is still a work in progress so please bear with me.

Jasper Energy LLC

On June 7, 2002, a company called York Research filed for bankruptcy. The reorganization had the companies development assets spun off into a new company called Jasper Energy LLC. The management of the bankrupt York Research became the management of the newly formed Jasper Energy. Shareholders in York were wiped out by this bankruptcy. This newly formed company does not report to the Securities and Exchange Commission and has never made its financial statements public.

According to their web site, "Jasper Energy LLC is a Delaware limited liability company headquartered in Harrison, New York, a suburb of New York City." What reasons could there be for a company operating out of New York State to incorporate in Delaware? One reason is that the laws of Delaware are favorable to corporations and by being incorporated there, they are bound by those laws rather than the corporate laws of New York State, where they are headquartered and conduct their business.

Ecology and Environment Inc.

Ecology & Environment Inc. has been presented to the people of Westfield and Ripley as the environmental consultant to Chautauqua Wind Power LLC. This is the company that has been doing the environmental studies for the Industrial Wind Power project that is proposed for the area

Chautauqua Wind Power LLC

Chautauqua Wind Power LLC, incorporated in Delaware is the company that was formed to develop the proposed Industrial Wind Power project on the ridge line in the towns of Westfield and Ripley. We do not know who all of the partners are in this Limited Liability Corporation but here is what we do know.

If Chautauqua Wind Power LLC was formed to do business only in New York State, why are
they incorporated in Delaware?

Jasper Energy LLC - incorporated in Delaware - is one of the major share holders of Chautauqua Wind Power LLC. This is a company that was formed out of the bankruptcy of York Research and the management of Jasper Energy is the same team that managed York Research when they filed for bankruptcy. (See the Reuters article "York Research Corporation Files Under Chapter 11") This bankruptcy was filed just 18 days before the first public information meeting on June 25, 2002. This means that a newly formed company, run by the management of a company that just filed bankruptcy, presented a major project that could change the character of the area forever. Business as usual for them.

Ecology and Environment Inc. calls themselves the environmental consultant on this project. In fact, they performed the Avian Risk Assessment and their representative presented it to the town. Why is this a problem? The answer to that is simple: Ecology and Environment Inc., in a May 2002 proposal for New York State funding of this project, is listed as an equity partner in this project. If they are an equity partner in this project, they have a financial interest in the successful construction of these turbines. Members of Chautauqua County Citizens for Responsible Wind Power have attempted to get clarification from Ecology & Environment Inc. regarding their financial involvement in this project but, to date, no answer have been forthcoming.

If Ecology & Environment Inc. has a financial interest in this project, how
can their studies be viewed as unbiased?

Something to note is the fact that the Chautauqua Wind Power LLC web site is part of the web site for Ecology and Environment Inc., not Jasper Energy. Why is this so?

Putting It Together

Here is how this situation comes together... It appears as though the majority interest in Chautauqua Wind Power LLC is Jasper Energy LLC - a company owned by the creditors of the now defunct York Research and managed by the same people as York Research at the time of their bankruptcy. Ecology and Environment Inc. may or may not be an equity partner in Chautauqua Wind Power LLC but they won't tell anybody if this is truly the case, though documents filed with the state seem to point to this being so. This is a tangled corporate web which nobody is willing to clarify to the residents of Westfield and Ripley.

Consider this... Chautauqua Wind Power LLC has or will receive millions of dollars in state money to construct this project. If our money is being used to build this project, shouldn't we have some say in where it goes? Would they even be considering this project if it wasn't for state aid?

Will Chautauqua Wind Power LLC be around to fulfill their obligations on this project?

If this company declares bankruptcy (worth considering since they are managed by the same people that managed the now defunct York Research), they receive their state money, put up these enormous wind turbines and then disappear. A bankruptcy would remove any obligation that they have to pay land owners for the sites on which these turbines sit. They would not even have an obligation to decommission the project which could mean that this could be just another abandoned wind project with turbines unlike any other in terms of their size. Who would have to clean up the mess if this happens?

At a recent meeting, where representatives of Chautauqua Wind Power LLC, Jasper Energy LLC and Ecology & Environment Inc. presented the avian risk assessment that was done by Ecology & Environment Inc., the attendees at the meeting had many questions. Most of these questions were either not answered or answered evasively. Further, the presenters sometimes took what appeared to be an aggressive stance towards the people asking the questions. This seems to be the way they respond to all questions that are asked of them when the answers to the questions may result in an opinion forming against the project. If this project is a good thing for the community, why won't they give us straight answers to the questions that we have?

Why won't Chautauqua Wind Power LLC answer our questions?