September 25, 2014
New York

Community wind turbines in Tompkins County

Community Wind Trubines in Tompkins County | Written By: Samantha Potter | WENY News | September 24, 2014 | www.weny.com

Tompkins County may be getting a community wind farm in the near future. Black Oak Wind Farm LLC has been working on this project for nearly eight years, and soon they hope their vision will become a reality.

Community owned wind farms are very popular in Europe but not so much here in the United States. Black Oak Wind Farm LLC is hoping to change that and is looking for investors. The company has plans to build seven commercial-sized wind turbines in Enfield and is offering shares to any New York State Resident.

Marguerite Wells, the project manager explains, “it’s not a fixed number. Basically because the investor can choose how much they want to invest. It depends on the size of the investment people want to make in this project. If everybody makes the minimum investment then this round, I think it would be 775 people.”

Once the wind turbines are built the energy produced will go directly into these regional grids. Meaning everyone in Tompkins and Schuyler county that’s a user of the grid will be using wind power. Wells says, they have the support from local neighbors and are doing their best to keep noise to a minimum.

“The turbines were getting from GE have special low noise features added to them so they are extra quite,” says Wells.

Wells says overall there are no real downfalls to wind farms and believes more and more will start popping up around the county.

“The benefits of wind turbines include the fact that the fuel is free. Wind is blowing anyways so we are not subject to things like spikes in the prices of oil or gas,” says Wells.

The town Is currently reviewing Black Oak’s environmental impact report. Wells says they hope to start construction next Spring.

For more information please visit http://www.blackoakwindny.com/.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2014/09/25/community-wind-turbines-in-tompkins-county/