Wind Power
Disclaimer: This page is intended to provide general information regarding Agency jurisdiction. Other provisions or restrictions may apply if an Agency permit or variance is required or if the property has previously been subject to Agency review.
This is a supplement to the Citizen's Guide, which provides basic information about Adirondack Park Agency regulations. Please contact the Agency with any questions. For a binding written response as to whether a specific proposal requires Agency review, please submit a Jurisdictional Inquiry Form online or by mail.
Updated: September 12, 2023
The Adirondack Park Agency Act and APA regulations implementing the Freshwater Wetlands Act and the Wild, Scenic, and Recreational Rivers System Act establish permitting requirements and shoreline restrictions for certain activities within the Adirondack Park. In some instances, these permitting requirements and shoreline restrictions may affect solar power projects.
Wind Power and APA Permitting
A permit may also be required if wind power structures will be located within a critical environmental area or a Scenic or Recreational river area.1
The Agency has developed a General Permit for the installation of small-scale, individual wind turbines and wind-monitoring masts for residential and small business use.
Wind Power and Adirondack Shorelines
Regardless of whether a permit is required, the following restrictions apply:
- Individual wind power structures greater than 100 square feet in size, and multiple attached structures that together measure more than 100 square feet in size, are prohibited within the following distances of any lake, pond, or navigable river or stream:
- 50 feet on Hamlet lands;
- 50 feet on Moderate Intensity Use lands;
- 75 feet on Low Intensity Use lands;
- 75 feet on Rural Use lands; and
- 100 feet on Resource Management lands.
- Wind power structures of any size are prohibited within:
- 150 feet of the mean high water mark of a designated Recreational river;
- 250 feet of the mean high water mark of a designated Scenic river;
- ΒΌ mile of the mean high water mark of a designated Wild river.
1 Wind power structures may also be reviewed by the Agency as part of a project that requires a permit for other reasons, such as the construction of a single family dwelling in a Resource Management land use area.