News
"It's beautiful. Tiring to get here, but beautiful," said Tom Susko, project manager at the wind farm. "It's a great place to be."
For the moment, the nine wind turbines in Bear Creek Township run by EnXCo and owned by Community Energy are the only ones in sight, but that could change as public and political demands for clean and cheap energy grow and wind energy is viewed as a good option.
Wind pattern maps provided by the American Wind Energy Association show the mountain ridges of northeast, central and southwestern Pennsylvania are among the most promising areas for the strong, steady winds needed for efficient wind power generation.
More turbines are expected to be built along the Allegheny plateau and central and eastern part of the state, said Tom Tuffey, of PennFuture, an environmental advocacy group.
"The ridge lines that have brought us coal are also the areas where these turbines will go," he said.
Great leap forward
Pennsylvania is second only to New York in projected production potential for wind energy east of the Mississippi, according to the wind energy association. Wind turbines installed in Pennsylvania are projected to produce 179 megawatts of electricity annually, with another 80 megawatts proposed or under construction. A megawatt is roughly enough energy to power 1 million homes.
Gov. Ed Rendell's proposed energy portfolio calls for as much as 4,000 megawatts of wind-produced electricity by 2018. That would require about 2,000 turbines to be built in the next 10 years.
"It might change the landscape, and some people might not like it," Nathan Wilcox, of PennEnvironment, said. "What people need to ask is would they prefer to look at a coal- burning facility or nuclear plant?"
Big vision, small towns
Wind-farm projects, often taking place in rural areas, force small-town governments to address new issues.
Supervisors in Bear Creek, a township of 2,700, have grappled with zoning regulations for the past three years. First, they had to deal with the Bald Mountain project, and then with the proposed 34-turbine Pennoscobot project by Energy Unlimited Inc.
Supervisor Bonnie Wasilewski said that dealing with multiple appeals from Energy Unlimited has been stressful, but the township has never been against wind energy.
Supervisors passed zoning regulations last summer that limit how close to homes and streams wind turbines may be constructed.
"It's a really new area of law for a lot of these places," township solicitor William Vinsko said. "They're unique in their zoning, and cause problems as far as setbacks from houses and watersheds."
PennFuture, in conjunction with the state Association of Township Supervisors and the County Commissioners Association, is working to draft a model wind turbine zoning ordinance that municipalities and counties can use.
Mr. Vinsko calls the proposal a positive step because many municipalities are not prepared to address issues turbines create.
"How do you tax these things?" he asked. "Right now they're treated like cell towers, but they improve the property a lot more than that. If you make an improvement to your property, you typically increase the value and, in turn, the taxes you pay increase. Well, these turbines are money-makers."
Even as wind energy is being touted as clean energy, neighbors to wind farms nationwide have expressed concerns.
Mr. Wilcox admitted there are problems with wind energy, but says its the best option Pennsylvania has right now. Like any industry, precautions should be taken, he said.
"We have a choice as a state: We can look for cleaner, sustainable energy or we can revert back to coal and other pollutants."
Contact the writer: cjones@citizensvoice.com
| < prev | next > |