Turbines pushed to harness wind

Friday, Nov. 20, 2009

Southern Maryland had windmills hundreds of years ago. Now they're coming back. A wind turbine went up this year in Charles County at Swan Point for private residential power and another is ready to go in St. Mary's at a waterfront home in Valley Lee. St. John's School in Hollywood now has a wind turbine.

The Potomac River Association held a forum Tuesday night for those interested in producing their own electricity through a wind turbine. It's not cheap and the location needs a steady stream of wind.

Ken Robinson put up a 33-foot-tall wind turbine on a spit of land at Swan Point in March, but it wasn't easy. Local and state regulators didn't know how to address a private wind turbine, he said, though the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative was helpful.

In trying to get the project pushed through, he said, "I realized there was nothing better than media attention … It basically embarrassed the county to approve it. The county was a roadblock all the way." Robinson is now a Democratic candidate for county commissioner in Charles.

His turbine cost $10,000 and with 700 feet of electrical trenching, the total installation cost came to $23,000, he said. He told the group it costs between $15,000 and $16,000 for a turbine that isn't so far away from a house.

"Quite frankly, this isn't for everyone," he said. The ideal spot for a private wind turbine is on the water. "The location — water and wind go hand in hand," he said. For locations away from the water, the turbine has to be much higher. Though Robinson's turbine was struck by lightning over the summer, it was grounded properly and wasn't damaged.

Over the past eight months, his turbine has generated between $1,200 and $1,500 worth of electricity, he said. And while his electric bills have gone down, there hasn't been a credit on his electric bill yet.

SMECO will provide credits for electricity put back on the grid, if wind turbines generate more than enough electricity to power a home. Wind turbine owners still have to pay SMECO's distribution charge. "We hope to be able to help you all out," said Eugene Bradford of SMECO, to those interested in the program.

Robinson said at this time of year, his turbine spins 85 to 90 percent of the time. It needs a sustained wind of at least 5 mph for at least five minutes to start up. The turbine's blades haven't killed any birds or bats, he said.

In Valley Lee, Richard A. Johnson has a 100-foot turbine in his backyard and is waiting to get a foundation poured for it and it should be up next month, he said. Johnson, a Republican candidate for St. Mary's County commissioner, pushed the county government to get wind turbines approved in the zoning ordinance.

According to the county ordinance, the maximum height of a wind turbine system is 85 feet on a lot less than an acre and up to 150 feet on larger lots. The tower needs to be set back from property lines by its height so in case it collapses, it falls on that property and not a neighbor's.

jbabcock@somdnews.com