July 4, 2013
Massachusetts

Scituate wind turbine expected back in operation Friday

By Lane Lambert | The Patriot Ledger | Posted Jul 04, 2013 | www.patriotledger.com

SCITUATE – Town officials say the Scituate Wind turbine should be back in operation Friday, 11 days after it was knocked out of service by a lightning strike.

Sheila Manning, the secretary in the town administrator’s office, said Wednesday that Solaya, the company that operates the turbine, has been testing and replacing wiring and other parts of the turbine’s electrical control system.

The 390-foot-high turbine was hit by lightning around 8 or 9 p.m. June 24, as a strong thunderstorm rolled through the area.

Solaya President Sumul Shah said this week that fuses and other small parts had to be replaced. Gordon Deane, president of Palmer Capital Corp., the manager of Scituate Wind LLC, said the structure and 131-foot blades were not damaged.

The 1.5-megawatt turbine is on the Driftway, next to the town’s wastewater treatment plant.

The venture has contended with complaints and a lawsuit from nearby residents, who say the turbine is too loud and causes headaches and other ailments. Both the town and the resident group have hired acoustical engineers to test the noise levels.

The acoustical testing, initially set to start in April, has not yet started because of uncooperative weather, Deane said. He said tidal patterns and the wind speed and directions have not lined up for testing.

Deane said the string of rainstorms in recent weeks has made it difficult for the two companies to test on the same dates.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/07/04/scituate-wind-turbine-expected-back-in-operation-friday/