FARMERSVILLE - Talk about a bad Internet connection.

Operators and engineers at a wind turbine off Interstate 55 near Farmersville said Thursday they hope the blades are turning for good after a weeklong shutdown caused by an interruption of high-speed Internet connections, among other problems.

"This is a pretty high-tech device. We control everything over the Internet," said David Stuva, president and chief executive officer of the Rural Electric Convenience Cooperative, based in Auburn.

Stuva said co-op customers, and the merely curious, have been calling the co-op to ask why the blades have not been turning at the turbine, especially on windy days.

"We get a lot of comments from people who see the turbine is not turning, and they give us a call. There's really nothing major wrong with the turbine. It's like any other mechanical device," said Stuva.

Engineers were able to get the blades turning again Thursday, and Stuva said the co-op is working with the phone company, Consolidated Communications, to resolve the off-and-on Internet glitches.

A faulty generator wire had been repaired Thursday, and adjustments also were being made to equipment that protects the turbine from lightning. The manufacturer is covering the cost of the repairs, said Stuva.

At capacity, the Farmersville turbine provides 4 to 5 percent of the co-op's power supply. Coal-fired plants generate the remainder.

Gov. Pat Quinn was among dozens of elected officials, co-op representatives and residents to turn out for a ribbon-cutting ceremony in April. The governor used the occasion to express confidence the state can reach a requirement of generating 20 percent of its electricity from renewable resources by 2020, including solar and wind turbines "in every nook and cranny of the state."

An American Wind Energy Association report found the number of wind farms in Illinois has grown to 10 since the first farm was completed in 2005 in northern Illinois. At least three more are under construction.

Proposed projects also continue to pop up across the state, including a major wind farm planned between New Berlin and Pleasant Plains. Developers of that project, which eventually would have to be approved by the county board, are conducting environmental studies and negotiating with landowners.

A group of residents in the area is pushing to require greater distance between turbines if the board acts on the project.

The DeKalb County board of commissioners recently approved the first wind farm in that county, just south of Rockford, but a planning and zoning committee also recommended a three-year moratorium on additional farms.

"The idea is to sit back to see if it's going to work they way they say it's going to," said committee chairman Kenneth Andersen. The 150-turbine farm would include 119 turbines southwest of DeKalb and additional turbines in an adjoining county.

Andersen said a group of residents in the area of the farm continues to fight the project "tooth and nail." But he said wind and solar energy are certain to play a role in future energy supplies.

Andersen added that he has had second thoughts about a moratorium, which is scheduled for a vote by the full board on July 15.

"I think we're making a mistake, though I did vote for it. I think it sends the wrong message, and if we didn't think it would work why did we vote 16-4 in favor of this (the new wind farm)?" Andersen said.

Jay Bartlett, who spent 25 years at City Water, Light & Power in Springfield before taking a job as president and CEO of Prairie Power Inc., said wind farms are no different than traditional power plants, which must have 15 to 18 percent excess capacity to cover times when portions of the plant are down.

"All power plants of all types have to have maintenance and repairs. It's why you need a mix (of sources) in your portfolio," said Bartlett.

The power co-op, based in Winchester, is working on plans for a turbine near Pittsfield, about 70 miles west of Springfield.

The general manager for one of the largest wind farms in the Midwest agreed that maintenance shutdowns, equipment failures and computer problems are no different at wind farms than any other large power plant.

"It depends a lot on the equipment manufacturer. They do have regular maintenance schedules that require you to shut them down. They may also go offline a little bit and come back on," said Don Root, who manages a nearly 250-turbine farm in portions of Iowa and Minnesota for AES Corp.

Wind turbines also shut down when wind speeds are too low or too high. For instance, the Farmersville turbine needs at least a 4 mph wind to operate and shuts down at wind speeds of 55 mph and higher to avoid damage to the turbine.

"If you ever go by a major wind farm, probably 10 to 15 percent of turbines are down at anytime for maintenance," said Stuva.

Stuva said the Auburn co-op will decide whether to invest in additional turbines based on the performance of the first. But technical problems at the start won't make a difference to that evaluation, he said.

"I support renewable energy, but you cannot rely on wind to provide all your power. You still have to have base load, whether it's coal or nuclear," said Stuva.

Wind farms in Illinois.

* Illinois ranks 10th nationwide in capacity at 915.06 megawatts (a megawatt supplies 700-1,000 homes).

Existing Illinois wind farms and year in operation

• Grand Ridge, LaSalle County; 2008.
• Providence Heights/Agriwind, Bureau County; 2008.
• Twin Groves II, McLean County; 2008 (phase two).
• Camp Grove, Marshall and Stark counties; 2007.
• Twin Groves II, McLean County; 2007 (phase one).
• GSG Wind, Lee and LaSalle counties; 2007.
• Sustainable Technologies Museum, Commonwealth Edison; 2007.
• Twin Groves I, McLean County; 2007.
• Crescent Ridge, Bureau County; 2005.

Source: American Wind Energy Association.