October 27, 2011
Massachusetts

Balloon test estimates height of turbine

By Kris Olson, Marblehead Reporter, www,wickedlocal.com 27 October 2011

Marblehead – WHAT IT IS An illustration created by the advocacy group Salem Wind, using a photo taken this past Saturday, Oct. 22 of a “balloon test” on Salem’s Winter Island, designed to approximate the height of a proposed wind turbine.

“I knew it was going to be big, but I didn’t think it was going to be that big from the Marblehead side; it’s much bigger than I thought.” That was Naugus Head resident Peter Carlton’s reaction to the balloon test, of which he had a prime view of from his back deck.

Carlton is a member of Salem Wind, a coalition of Marblehead and Salem residents who have recently hired a lawyer to help fight the proposed wind turbine.

Carlton stressed that perhaps the greatest concern Salem Wind has is with noise.

“I can’t help but believe we’ll be inundated by the sound [the turbine] will make,” Carlton said.

He added that, because the wind was blowing, the balloon test may have even underestimated the height of the turbines, which nonetheless appear from Marblehead to be on par with the size of the tallest stacks at the Salem Power Plant, due to the fact that the Winter Island site is 1,000 feet closer to town than the plant.

In the weeks ahead, Salem Wind plans to make a public presentation in Salem and also appear before the Marblehead Board of Selectmen. In the meantime, residents can learn more about the group at salemwind.org, Carlton said.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/10/27/balloon-test-estimates-height-of-turbine/