Tipping Wind

CBC is reporting that Superior Sanitation applies for city wind turbine. Mark this day, for it’s the day that wind power reached a tipping point.

Comments

Robert  Paterson's picture
Robert Paterson on August 31, 2004 - 12:55 Permalink

I think that you are right Peter.

Think also of our schools? What would be the odds that we have very expensive oil in say 5 years time? The schools have huge heating and energy bills. Wouldn’t it be the right thing to do to install a turbine at each school? If this was say in Kinkora, Crapaud or belfast would the community get involved as well?

I am starting to get excited — the ‘business case” is driving this. There are too many risks for a large user not to self insure.

Alan's picture
Alan on August 31, 2004 - 15:09 Permalink

We are looking at a 1.5 mw 80 metre placement here on City Land and it is interesting stuff. Planning set backs (ie the distance to the nearest residence) will be a challenge to work out — which would be a distinction between a school and where I think Superior Sanitation is wanting to place theirs. The relation of the turbine to the user is also important. Wind farms supplying areas rather than single turbines supplying single buildings have been the usual route so far as you need to synchonize the irregular power of the turbine into the grid or even a building. The guy on Brackey has DC lines in his house so a school might need a retrofit internally or its own (expensive) substation transformer. One solution I saw referenced once (but lost) was a micro turbine brick construction which could be fitted together in fencing and other non-building walls to create a somewhat visually benign source of power to meet the needs of a single building.