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Business North - The Daily Briefing - Business Newspaper Online
Windmills proposed on Great Lakes
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1/16/2009 by Richard Thomas |
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On Jan. 15, the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin approved the final draft of a report studying the feasibility of offshore wind turbines on Lakes Michigan and Superior.
"Off-shore wind projects in the Great Lakes have the potential to produce power on a larger scale, and thus more economically, than terrestrial wind projects due to the presence of more robust and consistent off-shore winds," states the report.
But, as the report notes, many logistics need to be worked out. For example, while it is easier to transport the turbine components to an offshore site, there are no specialized vessels needed for construction, such as barge-mounted cranes, on the Great Lakes.
Lake Superior, the roughest and deepest of the Great Lakes, is the least feasible.
"Superior will be the last lake to get offshore wind," said Jeff Gosse, Midwest regional wind coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Superior has a steeper drop-off than the other lakes, making turbines that rest on the lake bottom more difficult, he said.
Floating wind turbines for deep water are still in development. The first large-scale prototype is being built in Norway.
Lake Superior's shores are less populated than the other Great Lakes, and the transmission capacity of existing lines is not yet up to handling additional power.
The lack of infrastructure also prevents any development comparable to Canada�s Prince Wind Energy Project, which became operational on the shore of Lake Superior in 2006. It has 126 turbines on nearly 20,000 acres near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
Still communities on Lake Superior�s shores are assessing more modest terrestrial projects.
On Jan. 14, Wisconsin Gov. James Doyle announced that 23 communities will receive grants in 2009 to create "25 x 25" plans. Totaling $400,000, the grants are part of a strategy to generate 25 percent of the state's electricity and transportation fuel from renewable sources by the year 2025.
Recipients in Northwest Wisconsin are the cities of Washburn, Ashland, and Bayfield; the townships of La Pointe, Bayfield, and Ashland; Bayfield County; and the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
The Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in the Ashland region created an energy independence committee in 2005. The committee set up five monitoring towers to collect data on wind. The process was recently completed and the data sent off for analysis.
The tribe leased one of its towers to the Town of La Pointe on Madeline Island, which began monitoring wind on Nov. 1, 2008. At least one year of data is needed.
La Pointe received $60,000 through the state�s energy independence grant program. Alan Fischlowitz, member of the La Pointe Alternative Energy Committee, said the cost of building wind power is hard to determine in today's economy.
"There's a lot of activity in the market. Prices are high because demand is outstripping the ability to produce," he said. "But prices may come down by the time we're ready."
Minnesota's North Shore is a better source of wind than previously thought, concluded a year-long study completed last fall by the University of Minnesota Duluth's Center for Sustainable Community Development.
Center director Mike Mageau was skeptical of wind maps produced by the Minnesota Department of Commerce that showed wind by the lake registering at a low average of 10-12 miles per hour. Gauges were mounted on communication and fire towers in seven areas from Duluth to Grand Portage, and monitored by students.
The data revealed higher average winds, especially in Finland (17 mph), Hovland (17.4 mph) and Grand Portage (16-19 mph).
Mageau doubts large scale development will occur given limitations: the region�s limited transmission capacity, interference with bird migratory routes and the likelihood that residents and tourists will not appreciate large turbines dotting the landscape.
But the study has piqued the interest of several communities and businesses.
"My gut feeling is people are ready to invest in this," said George Wilkes, owner of the Angry Trout restaurant in Grand Marais. Wilkes is part the Cook County Local Energy Project, a citizens group that formed last April to promote local alternative energy sources including wind power.
"We're in the very beginning stage. It will take three to five years to get this going," he said.
Meanwhile, the city of Silver Bay is looking at alternative energy to power its industrial park on Lake Superior�s shore. Wind power, biomass and recovering excess steam from the Northshore Mining plant in Silver Bay all are under consideration.
"We're looking at turning it into an eco-industrial park," said city administrator Lana Fralich.
To finance a study the city has submitted a grant application to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Iron Range Resources already has agreed to add $12,500 to the state's $50,000 if the grant is approved.
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