Harnessing wind viable possibility in the state; Mesonet project is serving to pinpoint areas in Kentucky with the most wind
With volatile oil prices and stricter climate control regulations on the horizon, America’s small farms are facing an energy squeeze at a time when they are already fighting for survival against a tide of shrinking profit margins and increased competition.
One way that they may be able to help insulate themselves against an uncertain future is through the emerging area of energy self-reliance – wind power.
Harnessing the power of the wind is something farmers have been doing for centuries with windmills for grinding grain and pumping water. Today, wind turbines can be used to turn the wind’s power into electricity. However, data have historically suggested that Kentucky has low wind speeds – and therefore limited wind energy potential. But it’s far too early to discount that potential just yet, according to experts.
With improvements in technology and a growing body of research data, the prevailing attitudes toward wind energy may be changing. Wind data in Kentucky have been limited until recently, and with the state’s wide-ranging topography, there may be specific sites and applications where wind is a viable, cost-effective option. Past studies have been based on high altitude measures only, with data collected from a few sites around the state – mostly at regional airports.
“Historically there has not been a lot of wind data collected, and with the diversity of Kentucky’s terrain it is certainly possible that there are variations out there that have not been documented well – microcosms of areas throughout the state,” said Virginia Flanagan, executive director of the Kentucky Agriculture Heritage Center in Harrodsburg, which has a sustainable focus and began a wind study this year.
“While we know we are not in prime wind energy territory in this part of the mid-South and we are looking at opportunities that are on the lower end of the scale, wind energy may become more attractive,” said Dr. Stuart Foster, director of the Kentucky Climate Center at Western Kentucky University and the Kentucky Mesonet, a network of automated weather and climate monitoring stations being developed by the climate center.
The Mesonet stations collect real-time weather and climate data on temperature, precipitation, humidity, solar radiation, wind speed and direction. Data are packaged into observations and transmitted to the Kentucky Climate Center at WKU every five minutes, 24 hours a day, throughout the year. Since Mesonet’s first station at the WKU farm in Warren County became operational in May 2007, 38 stations have been installed toward a goal of 100 stations statewide.
The highest wind resources in Kentucky are found on the ridge crests in the state’s southeastern corner, concentrated in the Black Mountain region near the Virginia border. While that area may be suitable for utility-scale wind development, Flanagan said, the southcentral part of the state is best suited for localized variability analysis used in identifying small wind turbine opportunities.
Kentucky Mesonet is now collecting that data at 10 meters – about 33 feet – the standard height the National Weather Service uses, as wind speeds in general increase with altitude.
“Somewhere around 9 miles an hour is desirable,” Foster said. “Not that there is a magic number.”
As wind speeds increase, power capability increases. Average wind speeds from Mesonet stations over the last 12 months – collected at sites in Adair, Allen, Barren, Logan and Warren counties – ranged from 2 to more than 9 mph, with the highest speeds recorded in the winter and early spring months, according to Foster.
“The quality of the wind data at most sites is pretty good,” Foster said, adding that recording locations also vary with vegetation such as tree cover as well as topography.
Wind power is now one of the country’s largest sources of new power generation. In 2008, with more than 8,500 megawatts installed, wind power provided 42 percent of all the new generating capacity added in the U.S., according to the American Wind Energy Association.
Wind energy is also touted as an employment and economic stimulus as well as a powerful climate change solution, delivering large-scale emissions reductions that are effective and immediate as well as affordable. A 2008 report by the U.S. Department of Energy found that wind energy could generate 20 percent of the nation’s electricity – what nuclear power generates today – by 2030, with no ceiling on the amount of energy that can be produced.
The power generation sector is the largest contributor of carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. economy, accounting annually for about 40 percent. As concerns about climate change have become more urgent, wind power has emerged as an excellent option for reducing emissions as well as strengthening energy security, according to the Energy Department.
There’s is also a double cropping benefit for rural communities associated with wind energy. A single utility-scale wind turbine provides $3,000 annually per megawatt, generating more income to a landowner leasing his wind rights while farmers continue to grow crops up to the base of the turbines located on their land, according to the American Wind Energy Association.
“Wind energy may become a more attractive option for people in the right locations as technologies improve, costs go down and reliability of equipment improves,” Foster said. “It is certainly worth investigating, but doing due diligence is very important. It is a significant investment in terms of technology and commitment so people have to determine whether the long-term benefits are worth that investment. Of course, we would anticipate that energy costs may rise in the future, especially if we implement policies to decrease greenhouse gas emissions.”
Kentucky homeowners, farmers and small businesses may find it economically advantageous to use wind power if the average wind speeds are strong enough at a given location. An ideal site for a wind generator is 20 feet above any surrounding objects within a 250-foot radius with average, steady wind speeds of at least 9 mph, according to the Kentucky Department for Energy Development and Independence.
Installing a wind turbine can vary greatly in cost, starting with a few thousand dollars based on size, tower type, height, generating capacity, equipment and maintenance. Because of the expense of installing the units, it is first a good idea to consider having a wind evaluation conducted before purchasing a unit, said Timothy D. Hughes, senior policy analyst with the Governor’s Office of Agricultural Policy in Frankfort.
“These studies may be costly, but the expense is a fraction of the cost of a larger turbine,” Hughes said.
The Kentucky Agriculture Development Board’s County Agricultural Investment Program is one way to fund such a study, Hughes said. The state expects to open an application period for the On-farm Energy Efficiency & Production investment area – designed to provide farmers with a tool to help increase energy efficiency in their current production practices – in early spring.
“It is worthwhile for farmers to be aware of what the opportunities are and simply to know that we are collecting more data now with the Mesonet and we will have a better understanding of the situation, and as the economy changes people will be in a better position to make better informed decisions,” Foster said.
By LIZ SWITZER
The Daily News
29 November 2009
Tags: Wind power, Wind energy
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