Environmental issues were the dominant events of Tuesday’s city council meeting, which coincidentally fell on Earth Day.

Ames was recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency as one of 75 communities in the country with exceptionally clean water.

Jim Stricker, of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, presented Mayor Ted Tedesco with The Clean Water Partner for the 21st Century Award.

“Clean water in our city is an example of one of the things we’ve done to leave a legacy for future generations,” Tedesco said. “That’s the responsibility of our lives.”

Negotiations for possible construction of a wind farm north of Ames was another environmental issue tackled. The council analyzed a proposal put forth by the Florida Power and Light Company, hoping to secure financial commitments to build a 100-megawatt capacity wind farm near Mason City.

The wind farm would produce energy that displaces the normal source of energy for the Ames Power Plant, which is mostly coal.

The proposal would call for the Ames Electric Services to pay for a specific amount of energy only when it is provided. The operation would produce energy mostly in the winter, when it’s needed the least, said Steve Schainker, Ames city manager.

A major disadvantage of the $13 million agreement was the 20-year commitment, Schainker said.

“During the first half of the 20-year agreement, the city will actually be paying more for this wind power than it would cost to produce the same amount of energy,” he said.

The other deterrent to the plan was a lack of a transmission arrangement to transport the energy from the wind farm to Ames, Schainker said.

“If the wind power vendor is unable to secure a transmission path for Ames, then there is a real risk that the city will be required to pay for energy that we cannot receive in the absence of a firm transmission path,” he said.

Schainker affirmed the council’s decision to reject the wind farm proposal didn’t reflect a distrust of green power.

“We still strongly support alternative energy sources,” he said. “We just don’t want to invest in a 20-year commitment. In addition, wind data indicates the energy will not be available from the operation during our summer peak season.”