Is wind energy a viable alternative?
As the U.S. government continues to push for alternative energy sources, some residents are questioning whether some of the proposed projects in the Tri-County Area are “too good to be true.”
Luthersburg residents Sharon and Gary Gilmore are taking a closer look at a proposed wind farm in Clearfield County.
“We’re not anti-wind at all,” Sharon Gilmore said. “We have some major concerns about the project and the more I read, the more concerns I have. We want people to make an informed decision.”
According to a previously published Tri-County Sunday article, Iberdrola Renewables a company, which originated in Spain, is working to secure land lease agreements to construct a wind farm in the Luthersburg/Rockton/Sandy Ridge area. The company typically focuses on land which has already been cleared by strip-mining.
Although Iberdrola is best known for its wind energy, the company also provides natural gas storage and thermal generation.
The Gilmores said they had actually been searching for a company to put a wind mill or wind turbine on their property for quite some time when they received a letter from Iberdrola in June 2008. The Gilmores said they were sent a land lease contract and a meeting was held in the fall of 2008 by invitation only.
“We had a lot of concerns,” Sharon Gilmore said. “I thought maybe I’m being a little extreme here. We missed the next meeting they had but I spoke to one of our neighbors who also had concerns and we decided to get going on this and do some research.”
Gilmore said she thought a lot of the land owners were signing the contracts without having all the information. She said with any project, there are pros and cons. She said they were invited to the opening of the Cassleman Wind Farm in Somerset County and said the visit really “opened their eyes.”
“It was foggy that morning and you couldn’t really see the turbines at first,” Gary Gilmore said. “When we did see them, we stopped to take a look.”
“I thought we were near a highway,” Sharon Gilmore said. “It sounded like a stream of cars doing about 60 miles per hour. It was a whoosh-whoosh-whoosh sound as the blades passed the tower.” The Gilmores toured the site and spoke to some of the local residents who also were concerned about the noise.
After the visit, the Gilmores continued to research wind farms and eventually found Laura Jackson of “Save Our Allegheny Ridges.” The Gilmores then invited Jackson to come speak to the residents about some of the issues which have been coming up surrounding the wind farms.
At that meeting, Jackson spoke of problems some residents living near wind farms had with low-frequency vibrations and low decibel noise as well as the sound of the blades passing the tower. Jackson said some hunters were reporting wildlife moving away from areas surrounding the wind farms as a result of the noise and low-frequency vibrations.
According to information provided by National Wind Watch Inc., physicians from England, Canada, and New Zealand have recorded common health symptoms among people living near industrial-scale wind turbines which are believed to be caused by the low-frequency vibrations. The symptoms begin when the turbines operate and are only relieved when the residents leave the area. The symptoms include, disturbed sleep, headaches, ringing or buzzing in the ears, pressure in the ears, dizziness or vertigo, nausea, blurred vision, racing heartbeats, irritability, memory or concentration problems, and panic attacks with sensations of internal pulsation or quivering.
Another concern the Gilmores had was with a phenomenon known as “shadow flicker,” which occurs when the sun is positioned behind the blades of a turbine. The spinning of the blades creates a strobing effect on the ground and in homes near the turbine. The “shadow flicker” can also cause headaches, dizziness, nausea, irritability, and memory or concentration problems.
Craig Poff, senior project developer, and Paul Copleman, communications manager, for Iberdrola Renewables’ King of Prussia offices, said Iberdrola takes all concerns into consideration.
“We’re very careful as to how we put the wind farms together,” Poff said. “The community plays a big part in where these wind farms are located.”
Poff and Copleman said many of the problems with noise, low-frequency vibration, and shadow flicker can be eliminated by using proper set-backs which will ensure the turbines are located a safe distance from homes and other buildings.
The Gilmores and other residents are also concerned about the wind farms decreasing the property value of residents who live near the farms.
The lease agreement is for 25 years with the option to renew. The Gilmores are concerned about what may happen if the company goes under or if better technology comes along that makes the present turbines obsolete.
Poff and Copleman said studies show the wind farms actually increase property value because the turbines generate income for the lease-holder. The agreement states Iberdrola will pay the property owner a percentage of the income generated by the turbine or turbines on their property. Poff and Copleman also said there are procedures in place to decommission towers if they are no longer used.
“It’s not a very efficient way of producing power,” Sharon Gilmore said. She said each turbine proposed in the Clearfield County farm produce about two megawatts of electricity. She said the Reliant Power Plant in Shawville produces about 800 megawatts. It would take 400 turbines to “replace” the electricity produced at Shawville. However, the turbines only operate at about 30 percent efficiency which means 1,200 turbines would be needed to offset the power generated in Shawville. Industry standards say only eight turbines can be placed per mile, which means 150 miles of land would be needed for the turbines.
“The Continental Divide is a unique resource,” Gary Gilmore said. “Do we want to clutter it up with all these turbines?”
According to previously published Tri-County Sunday articles, once a wind farm is up and running, the electricity produced can be brought to the public two ways.
The first way is to connect the wind farm directly to a pre-existing electricity grid. That allows the electricity produced locally to be used in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. By using an existing grid, homeowners do not have to retrofit their houses as they would if they simply hooked their homes directly to the windmill, which is the second way.
“I would be interested in a locally-owned wind turbine, where the community would get some of the proceeds,” Sharon Gilmore said.
Pennsylvania now has an alternative energy portfolio standard which calls for an increase in the percentage of the state’s electric supply produced using clean methods which means the state is supporting projects such as the Clearfield County Wind Farm
According to Poff and Copleman, work is still on-going on the Clearfield County Wind Farm project and nothing has been finalized yet.
4 July 2009
Tags: Wind power, Wind energy
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