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| FIRST WIND HIGHLIGHTED IN BOSTON BUSINESS JOURNAL'S SUSTAINABLE BOSTON ISSUE |
| Wind efforts keep pace, although challenges remain |
| 02/13/2009 |
| February 13, 2009 - A worsening recession. A multibillion dollar budget shortfall. Frozen credit markets. Falling oil prices. Common sense says the times aren’t in favor of ramming through huge, capital-intensive projects to deliver alternative forms of energy, namely wind power, to Massachusetts’ communities. Nonetheless, last month Gov. Deval Patrick announced an ambitious plan to develop 2,000 megawatts of wind-power capacity in Massachusetts by 2020. The bulk of that effort is expected to move forward by 2012 — that is, in the short term. Today only three states have more wind-power capacity than that, according to the American Wind Energy Association: Texas, Iowa and California. And as if that wasn’t reason enough to be skeptical, consider where Massachusetts is starting from. As it stands, Massachusetts’ nine wind turbines of 100 kilowatts or more add up to only 6.6 MW of power capacity. But wind energy is catching on, and its proponents say capital constraints and state budget shortfalls are unlikely to dent that momentum. In fact, the biggest threat is that all-too-familiar killer of public projects in Massachusetts: NIMBY-ism (aka not in my backyard syndrome). “It’s clear that we can get this goal achieved. We’ve just got to get everyone channeled,” said Phil Giudice, commissioner of the Division of Energy Resources. Despite the weak economy, money isn’t seen as the biggest obstacle. “The financing is easy. It either makes sense financially or it doesn’t,” said Jonathan Fitch, manager of the Princeton Municipal Light Department. Princeton is in the midst of replacing eight 40 kilowatt wind turbines with a pair of new turbines with the ability to put out 3,000 kW. It secured $7.5 million in financing for the job. Giudice, who also oversees the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust, which provides financial assistance for wind turbines and solar panels, said federal efforts should also buoy smaller plans at home. “I do see the opportunity to see the state put money to work from the (Renewable Energy) Trust on a more streamlined basis,” Giudice said. The tougher challenge will be finding room for more turbines. The West and Midwest have lots of open space for giant propellers. Massachusetts doesn’t. “It seems that you are going to be challenged on your permits, because at the end of the day people just don’t want to see them,” Fitch said. “Not the majority, mind you. But there will always be a minority that won’t.” For example, it took the town of Princeton three years to get a zoning exemption for its project, he said. The Cape Wind project on Nantucket Sound is often cited as a wave of the future, with its proposal to build 130 wind turbines. Still, Cape Wind and other projects have been repeatedly rebuffed and delayed by community groups. “I think a good chunk of the megawatts ... will come from the offshore wind sector,” said Paul Gaynor, president and CEO of First Wind, a Newton company that develops wind farms. “Over the course of the next decade the notion of putting 1,600 MW of wind in the water, that seems very doable.” The Green Communities Act also requires utilities to generate 15 percent of their sales from renewable energy sources by 2020. One more factor in the governor’s favor is that the state will count small installations “behind the meter” at homes and businesses toward the 2,000 MW total. Massachusetts’ electricity rates are among the highest in the nation, so the payback for small wind turbines on homes and businesses is relatively fast, said Newell Thomas, project manager for Lighthouse Electrical Contracting Inc. in Rockland. Massachusetts’ electricity rates are among the highest in the nation, so the payback for small wind turbines on homes and businesses is relatively fast said Newell Thomas, manager of the renewable energy division of Lighthouse Electrical Contracting Inc. in Rockland. One customer, a farmer in Nantucket, should get enough power from his wind installation to pay back the investment in four years, said Lighthouse president Herb Aikens. Those wind turbines should have a useful life of 20 years. Many businesses in Massachusetts have room for one or two turbines, said Thomas. “Those kinds of systems and medium-scale turbine size are very popular now.” By Robert Celaschi Special to the Journal |
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