"The impacts that the wind farm and the oil industry have are very similar -- they're both putting a strain on housing, and they're both bringing more traffic to restaurants but also creating a lot of truck traffic on the roads," said Harper County's Roder.

The lines of trucks driving through town hauling materials to the wind farm or various oil rigs are tearing up the roads and leading to some of the first traffic jams that locals have seen. Meanwhile car accidents and DUIs are on the rise, making it even more dangerous to be on the roads.

Due to the sudden need for construction workers for both the wind farm and the oil industry, some local businesses -- and even the county -- are losing valued employees to these new higher-paying projects -- leaving a gap in the local workforce, said Roder.

"This has put a tremendous strain on the construction segment of the labor force," he said. "Right now everyone is looking for construction, equipment operators, electrical workers -- so if you're looking for work in the construction business, this is a great place to be. Anyone who wants to work, there's work available."