Wind turbine questions raised at International Water meeting  

Credit:  By Matthew Farfan, The Sherbrooke Record, www.sherbrookerecord.com 16 November 2011 ~~

One of the more vocal opponents of the proposed Derby Line wind turbine project addressed the annual meeting of the International Water Company (IWC) recently in Stanstead. The IWC manages the drinking water supply of both Stanstead and Derby Line, Vermont, and is made up of elected officials from both sides of the border. Karen Jenne, who is the village clerk and treasurer of the Village of Derby Line, as well as a member of the five-person select board (i.e., town council) of the Town of Derby, spoke to the IWC last week.
Jenne said that as one of the people “who may be making a recommendation on the Derby Line wind turbine project,” she wanted to share with the IWC members some of her concerns regarding the project.
Among those concerns, she said, was potential structural damage to the IWC water reservoir as a result of construction of the turbines, which would be located on farms nearby. Jenne said that she had spoken to Don Phillips, a water resource engineer with the firm Aldrich and Elliot, and that Phillips had recommended that various tests be carried out on the reservoir before any construction begins. These tests would include a leakage test, a pre-blast survey of the reservoir walls, and the installation of seismic meters at the reservoir to measure shock waves coming from blasting during turbine construction. Philips also suggested that checks be carried out on the Holland Pond water line, Jenne said.
Jenne also reported that she had spoken to Ken Yelsey, a hydrologist with the Water Resources Section of the Water Supply Division of the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation who, she said, “felt that IWC’s goal should be to protect the water source of the users on both sides of the border.”

Please see Thursday’s Border Report for the complete story.