Saco Maine officials give consideration to wind power

[JohnWxy]

http://www.boston.com/news/local/maine/articles/2006/03/31/saco_officials_give_consideration_to_wind_power/



March 31, 2006

SACO, Maine --City officials are exploring whether it makes sense to erect a wind turbine to generate electricity and cut down on the city's energy costs.


Members of the City Council's energy committee, along with Mayor Mark Johnston and City Administrator Rick Michaud, are planning a trip on April 17 to Hull, Mass., where two wind turbines save the city hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in electricity costs.

Committee Chairman Eric Cote said everything is preliminary at this point, though he would like to see a wind turbine included in a capital improvement bond question for the November election.

The city and the Saco school department now pay between $800,000 and $900,000 a year for electricity, so a wind turbine could pay for itself in a few years, he said.

"Why are we so concerned about our supply of oil and natural gas or anything else when you can produce energy, pollution-free, from the wind?" Cote asked.

Hull Light Department's 164-foot wind turbine was erected in 2001 and produces about 1.5 million kilowatt hours of energy a year.

A larger turbine was built this year at Hull's landfill. It is expected to generate 4.7 million kilowatt hours a year, enough to save $500,000 more on power costs.

[jpak]

1. Thanks for posting this

I think every town should have a wind turbine, or a landfill/sewage biogas plant, or a biomass co-generation plant, or a small hydro plant or PV and solar thermal systems mounted on schools and local government buildings to defray energy costs.

Energy independence begins at home....

:)

[kestrel91316]

2. Quick, somebody needs to tell these people that you CAN'T make

electricity from large scale wind power. Only small scale works!!!!!! LOL

(some yahoo on the board actually thinks wind power is BS)

[Old and In the Way]

3. Very cool...my hometown.

Mark's my age...he's been City Manager seems like forever. He's definitely got some great ideas and was a vocal opponent of the trash-to-energy incincerator (MERC) that was sited in downtown Biddeford, right next door.