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Barrington's Wind Energy Project (WEP):
Halloween special, courtesy of google: how to save energy The WEP is the first major focus for the Committee for Renewable Energy for Barrington (CREB). Under consideration is a 600 kW wind turbine to offset the Barrington High School electricity load. In 2007, the high school used 1.14 million kW-hours of electricity, which was about one quarter of the total municipal electric load. The proposed turbine would produce a comparable amount of annual energy. The primary installation site that we are considering is near the Legion Way Building at Brickyard Pond. On October 6th, the CREB made its recommendation to contract with Lumus Construction INc to design, install, test, provide training, and maintain a 600 kW Elecon Wind Turbine Generator (WTG) at the Legion Way site for approximately 10% under its budget of $2.4 million. On October 21 the Town Council held a workshop to discuss the WTG Project at the High School auditorium at which the public gave comments. Further updates about the process will be made at the next town council meeting in November. |
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WEP Rationale
There is a multifaceted rationale for investing in an urban-sited Barrington turbine. A short-term reason for a Barrington turbine is that it will provide direct and substantial economic benefits to our school system. At this time, state and federal incentives make WEP a great investment of capital for Barrington.A medium-term reason for a Barrington turbine is that it would be a catalyst for simultaneously 1) developing future projects to help meet town goals for energy use and 2) engaging our young people with cutting edge sustainability issues. The association of the wind turbine with the high school is more than symbolic: besides the direct financial benefits for the school we expect to help establish a renewable energy club at the high school, and we will provide ideas, suggestions and support for seniors interested in structuring their senior projects around sustainability issues. In return we hope that the club and the senior projects will provide seeds that develop into new projects and initiatives for CREB.
A long-term -- and also the most powerful -- reason is that a Barrington turbine would represent a profound shift in perspective. We no longer have time to wait to address issues of global warming and fossil fuel dependence. We are establishing the wind turbine with our future needs and survival in mind. The sooner and more completely local communities such as ours embrace proactive energy independence initiatives such as the WEP , the sooner our governmental and corporate leaders will respond by implementing large scale sustainability initiatives.
It is true that large scale wind farms -- especially off-shore wind farms -- provide a better dollar return on investment, due both to economy of scale and superior wind. As mentioned above, we believe local initiatives will be a key factor in helping to drive and support larger long-term solutions.
A history of WEP
The Town of Barrington has had a long-standing interest in renewable energy, and especially wind energy.In 2006, the Town Council acted on this interest and appointed a Wind Energy Exploratory Committee consisting of 26 Barrington residents - including engineers, wind developers, contractors, financial advisors, investment firm principals, and environmental lawyers – that collected and analyzed data on the wind resource, suitable sites to locate a wind turbine, the wind technology available, and the economics of installing a wind turbine generator in the town. In June 2007, the exploratory committee reported two main conclusions: 1) that it was technically feasible to site and construct a medium-size, behind-the-meter turbine in Barrington and 2) that it was – assuming certain criteria were met – prudent, cost effective and a good use of resources to do so. The criteria are the following:
- Organizational criteria
- Formation of a standing town energy committee
- Criteria specific to WEP
- Application for and receipt of Federal zero-interest bonds
- Retention of an energy consultant
- Verification of wind data accuracy via a meteorological tower
- Broader sustainability criteria
- Town energy conservation as a primary sustainability effort
- Collaborations with other communities and the state
- Education and involvement of the community, especially students and teachers
Criteria specific to WEP A subset of CREB had, back in July, helped the town apply to the Federal Government for $2.1 million in zero interest Clean Renewable Energy Bonds to be used for constructing a turbine. Barrington High School – which uses quarter of all municipal electricity – was selected as the best load for the project. That is, energy generated by the turbine would offset the energy used at the high school at market price. A 600 kW wind turbine generator was selected as the best choice for this project, and the original site was chosen to be at the Barrington High School. This choice was informed by two factors: a recommendation of a 300 to 500 foot setback from private residences by the exploratory committee, and State legislation essentially forcing the turbine to be at the site of use, i.e., the "load."
Barrington received the no-interest loan, subject to a commitment from the town. In May 2008, voters at the Financial Town Meeting authorized the issue of the zero interest bonds to build the turbine somewhere on town property.
CREB chose to modify the criteria about obtaining accurate wind data. In January 2007 a new wind resources map of New England became available from TrueWind, LLC. CREB decided that the wind speeds and error estimates from TrueWind provide solid economic backing for the project. More information is available under technology and economics.
The final WEP-specific criteria, that of hiring an external wind expert, was addressed by hiring Henry DuPont of Lorax Energy Systems as an external energy consultant.
Shortly after the May Financial Town Meeting a number of community members voiced concerns about the project. Two primary concerns were about 1) health and safety, and 2) transparency of process. These concerns prompted CREB members to begin addressing the broader sustainability criteria.
Broader sustainability criteria In June 2008 CREB began addressing the broader set of criteria. They enlarged their set of contacts with other communities involved with sustainability, such as Haverhill MA and Plymouth, NH. The committee is also in discussions with the EPA about the possibility of Barrington joining the EPA's Community Energy Challenge, a program with a strong focus on conservation. CREB revisited the issue of health and safety concerns by appointing an ad-hoc Subcommittee on Health and Safety. Membership on the subcommittee is voluntary and open to the public. We plan to publicize the final report to other communities and the state, since we believe it will be valuable to any town considering an urban-sited turbine. Finally, CREB began construction of this website to foster transparency, and public education and involvement.
In July 2008, new state legislation about "virtual net metering" resulted in CREB recommending a change in the primary site from Barrington High School to the Legion Way. A year earlier, in 2007, the State of Rhode Island passed special net metering legislation allowing Barrington to get full retail credit from any excess energy sold back to the utility at night or during the summer for a behind-the-meter turbine on municipal property. At that time, behind-the-meter meant that the turbine was at the same location as the electricity user. The 2007 legislation dictated both the original proposed site (the high school) and the size of the turbine (comparable to the high school load). The July 2008 "virtual net metering" legislation allows Barrington to produce energy at one municipally-owned location and get full retail credit for energy used at any municipally-owned location. Compared to the high school site, the Legion Way site has better wind and is further from occupied buildings (i.e., has a larger setback).
Also in July, CREB released a request for proposals.
On August 1st 2008, the Subcommittee on Health and Safety issued a first draft of its report on health and safety concerns. The report will be released in mid August, and will be available on this website.
How to provide input about WEP
Online methodsIt is easy to interact with the committee through the "submit comment/question" buttons provided throughout the site. In order to promote transparency and dialog, the first time you respond you will be asked to register at the CREB website. Subsequently, you need only to log in to provide further comments. Comments will be collected in batches by point of submission on WEP pages. The committee will use these comments to help structure our three community meetings, to add content to the frequently asked questions (FAQs), and in general to inform our decision-making processes.
Other methods
- Attend one of our three WEP community meeting on Wednesday, August 20 at 7 PM at the Legion Hall; Wednesday, August 27 at the Town Council Chambers in the Town Hall; and Wednesday September 10 at the Town Library Auditorium
- Provide public commentary at CREB meetings (generally held at the library 7 p.m. Tuesday nights) and Town Council meetings.
- Submit letters to the editors of the Barrington Times and the Providence Journal.
- Initiate or sign petitions for submission to the Town Council.