A gas-fired power plant proposed by Alliant Energy should not be built just west of the Eastern Iowa Airport due to “concerns for airport safety,” and “a more suitable alternative location should be identified for the facility,” a report commissioned by Foth Infrastructure on behalf of the Cedar Rapids Airport Commission concludes.
The utility impacts analysis, prepared by Montreal, Canada-based AtkinsRéalis, was released by airport officials Monday, Sept. 15.
The report stipulates that “airport operators need to maintain appropriate land use compatibility to ensure aircraft safety, minimum public nuisances, grant eligibility, and compliance with airport design standards.”
The power plant site proposed by Alliant, on the southeast side of Fairfax and about three miles west of the current main runway of the Eastern Iowa Airport (CID), would impose a number of detrimental impacts on airport operations, the report indicates:
- Incompatibility with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) land use standards, due to “tall stacks that may obstruct flight paths, thermal plumes and smoke emissions that can affect aircraft safety (and) bright lighting and extended operational hours that may interfere with airport operations.”
- Incompatibility with Fairfax zoning code provisions. The proposed location is currently identified in the Fairfax future use plan for “industrial” use, according to the report, but both the city’s light industrial and heavy industrial categories would not allow a utility power plant due to “excessive smoke production,” “incompatible uses and structures” and “structural height restrictions” due to the proposed plant’s exhaust stacks.
- The proposal’s impact on the airport’s eligibility for federal grants. “For CID to remain eligible for federal grants, the Airport Sponsor must ensure to the greatest extent that the utility plant does not impede normal operations for both the existing and future conditions of the airport,” the report says. “As the utility plant will impede the future business jet traffic pattern, it is not recommended for the utility plant to be placed at the proposed site and instead find a new site that is consistent with local plans and interests.”
- The creation of “plumes,” identified in the report as “hazards to general aviation aircraft due to turbulence caused by the upward motion of the plume and [a] lack of oxygen in the plume.” “To protect the aircraft, a plume caution area, a three-dimensional cylinder in the airspace centered around the stacks, is recommended for all potential sites in the airport vicinity to evaluate the impact on airport operations,” the report indicates, creating a “risk of turbulence associated with flying above/near (the plume). In prevailing winds, (the) plume will blow directly into (the) flight path for aircraft in the traffic pattern.”
Alliant officials say the plant would be located on 25 to 30 acres of Alliant-owned land along 76th Avenue SW.
The main generation portion of the plant would be in a building about 140 feet high, and two cooling towers could rise 190 to about 240 feet above ground level.
According to minutes from a Fairfax Planning and Zoning Commission meeting in July, Alliant officials have said the plant could generate about 850 megawatts of electricity. That’s enough to power 400,000 to 900,000 homes.
While power usage from the Fairfax plant would not be specifically designated for any particular purpose, Alliant officials have previously said that electrical demand from two data center projects south of Cedar Rapids, being developed by Google and QTS, will dramatically increase the power demands for the area, necessitating new generation sources.
Alliant has other possible sites for the plant under consideration, but they have said the location near Fairfax is preferred because they already own the land and because the plant’s close proximity to existing electrical infrastructure would lower development costs.
Alliant has previously indicated they hope to present the plan to the IUC this fall, with permitting and design in 2026, and construction from 2027 to 2030. The plant would tentatively begin operation in 2030.
Alliant’s investment in the project could exceed $1 billion, according to minutes from the Fairfax zoning meeting.
Several Fairfax residents expressed concerns about the proposal at a city council meeting last week, but city leaders say the power plant would bring new revenue to the city via excise taxes. They also approved the first reading of a zoning amendment that would allow a “special exemption” for utility power plants.
This is a developing story, and will be updated with additional information.
