Posted: 04/18/07

Blowin’ in the wind
Wind turbine to power local library

Kurstin Reuschel | contributing writer
kreuschel@smcvt.edu

By June of this year, the town of Hinesburg, Vt. is going to install a small wind turbine in Geprags Park to help power the Carpenter-Carse Library.

The turbine is funded by a Vermont Department of Public Service grant and its installation has been an ongoing process that started in 2005, says Rocky Martin, Hinesburg Director of Buildings and Facilities.

An electricity-generating windmill behind Dynapower Corporation in South Burlington, Vermont. (Colin Vallance, photo)

In order to receive the grant, the building was required to be municipal and have some sort of educational value.

“We looked at a number of different sites, like the [Champlain Valley Union] high school, but the wind was not sufficient,” Martin says, “This particular site has good wind exposure.”

According to Martin, the grant process was relatively quick and easy. Once they formally applied for the grant, it only took a couple of weeks.

However getting a permit proved more difficult because in order for the turbine to be installed, a certificate of public good had to be issued by the Public Service Board.

The certificate makes sure that the turbine is in the public’s interest. It will also allow a meter to be installed on the library.

The meter will document when power isn’t being used and wind is still creating power, resulting in a deduction on the library power bill, says Martin.

“It’s been about one year since we applied [for the grant], picked the library and received the certificate of public good,” says Martin.

Earth Turbines will install the turbine, which will cost about $25,000. The company is relatively new and is still in the planning and development stages, says Abby White, PR Specialist at NRG Systems Inc.

The turbines the company is currently installing are prototypes and are not available for general production. The few operating turbines are being studied to work out potential glitches, White says.

Burden or blessing?

Library director Sue Barden was approached by Martin about building the turbine in Geprags Park to help to power the library. Barden then passed it on to the library’s trustees.

“Even though the library doesn’t take a formal stance, [the trustees] and myself were very supportive of something that would reduce the taxpayers' burden,” Barden says.

Martin says he is not yet sure to what extent the turbine will reduce the library’s power bill, but it will not produce enough power for a 100 percent deduction on their bill as the turbine is relatively small - 100 ft. tall by 14 ft wide.

Sustainable and renewable energy is a growing trend within Vermont, according to Abby White, PR Specialist at NRG Systems Inc. (Colin Vallance, photo)

According to the American Wind Energy Association's Web site, a wind turbine collects kinetic energy from wind and converts it to electricity, which, in this case, will be compatible with the library’s electrical system.

If wind speeds are below the speed at which the turbine operates- which is seven to ten miles per hour - there will be no output from the turbine. When wind increases, turbine output also increases, further reducing the power bill.

When the turbine produces more power than needed, the library will be credited on its electrical bill.

The library is a 6,000 square ft. building, containing many lights and computers, a gas heating unit circulated by fans in the winter, and air conditioning in the summer, Barden says.

Robert Ide, Director of the Energy Division at the Vermont Department of Public Service, says there will be educational material near the turbine as part of the educational component required by the grant.

Sustainable and renewable energy is a growing trend within Vermont, according to White. The wind energy industry has been growing 20-30 percent each year, with the United States having the largest wind market in the world.

Wind energy is a beneficial, clean, renewable resource and is produced and used on site, says White. Unlike other forms of energy, wind power produces no CO2.

“Really I think the drawbacks are in the eye of the beholder - some see [wind turbines] as an eyesore,” says White.

Wind energy continues to be a highly controversial subject as there is deep concern on what it does to the aesthetic of the landscape, Ide says.

Extra consideration

In the process of receiving the certificate of public good, two citizens came forward with formal complaints, Martin says. They own the properties closest to where the turbine is to be built.

The first citizen was concerned with the noise the turbine will make. This was addressed and the citizen was informed that because of the small size of the turbine, it will be much quieter than the larger ones.

The second citizen was concerned with power lines being installed above ground. This was also addressed and the citizen was informed that the power lines will be buried. Each withdrew their complaint, Martin says.

According to Martin, there were no formal complaints about the aesthetic value of the turbine, but indirectly there was some discontent.

If this project is successful, Martin hopes to install a larger turbine in the future. This would be no taller than the one to be built at the library (100 ft.) but have a wider turbine.

In order to do this, Hinesburg would once again have to go though the process of obtaining the certificate of public good.

There will be a party and community work day held on May 19. Martin and the town of Hinesburg are inviting town members to help clear the brush out of the area in Geprags Park where the turbine will be built.