Action brings home wind power one step closer in Charles

County board OKs Swan Point variance request

Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2008

The Charles County Board of Zoning and Appeals unanimously approved a variance request by Swan Point resident Sheryl Elliott to erect the county's first wind turbine on a one-acre piece of property that she and her husband, Ken Robinson, own adjacent to their home on the Potomac River.

A variance was necessary because the 33-foot-tall windmill will be erected in the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area and it is considered an accessory structure, according to county planners.

The $20,000 project has been in the planning stage for a little more than a year, said Robinson, who recused himself from the variance hearing because he serves on the board of appeals.

"We're excited to have the opportunity to provide an alternative to the traditional means of generating electricity," he said.

"We hope that by being the first to do this it will open the door for many in the region to do something similar," Elliott added.

The windmill will sit on a 6-foot-by-6-foot concrete base on the couple's property that is located where the Potomac River meets Cuckold Creek, Robinson said, adding that the windmill will be simple in design with only three blades at the top to produce wind power to generate electricity.

Board member Fred R. Mower said he expects to see more windmill proposals show up on the board's agenda as energy prices continue to rise.

"This is going to be the wave of the future," he said. "The county is going to have to get some regulations on the books to govern these structures or we're going to have them popping up everywhere."

Approving the variance was a difficult decision, Mower said.

"On the one hand, we've got the conservation areas that we're charged to protect, but on the other hand we've got this green issue to provide safer and cleaner power and the green issue won," he said.

No one testified against the installation of the wind turbine during the hearing. One person spoke in favor of it and several people submitted letters in support of the project, including Sen. Thomas "Mac" Middleton (D-Charles).

"Every kilowatt of energy conserved through energy efficiency or produced through renewable energy is one less kilowatt expended and less pollution to our environment," Middleton wrote in his letter of support.

The Maryland Energy Administration also wrote a letter in support of the proposal.

"Renewable sources of energy are extremely important to all Maryland citizens," wrote Ross Tyler, director of clean energy for the administration, in the letter. "They not only offer environmental benefits, but they may also provide increased reliability to help overcome the potential for generation outages in the 2011 to 2012 time frame. In addition, they help dampen energy price swings as they are not subject to significant fuel price volatility. … The state needs not only large scale clean energy production, but also many small innovative projects such as the one being proposed by Ms. Elliott and Mr. Robinson."

The windmill will produce enough electricity to shave 25 to 40 percent off the couple's Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative bill, Robinson said in an earlier interview. If the windmill produces more electricity than what the couple needs, SMECO will give them a credit on their electricity bill, he said, adding that the extra kilowatts will not go back into the local electricity grid.

Swan Point resident Andy Klingenstein spoke in favor of the project during Tuesday's hearing.

"Originally, I wasn't thrilled with the idea from a visual point of view, but after I looked at the plans I decided that they did a very good job in minimizing the impact," he said Wednesday, adding that he lives next door to the couple. "I'm convinced that they did it in the most sensible way possible, and I applaud the environmental impacts of it."

Robinson said that he was grateful to the county's planning staff for all of the help he received while going through the approval process.

"I was very impressed with how professional and helpful the county staff was during the entire process," he said, adding the proposal was a challenge because it is the first wind turbine to be erected in Charles County. "The staff was very creative in helping to figure out the process for us."

The Chesapeake Bay Critical Area Commission and SMECO have also given the project the green light, Robinson said.

"We're ready to go," he said. "As soon as we get the permits we can start."

Robinson said that although the project is expensive he hopes that more people will consider generating electricity in environmentally friendly and innovative ways.

"The current economic conditions may slow things down, but somebody has got to be the first to do this," he said, adding that he hopes to have the windmill operational by the first of the year.

"We've set the framework in process."

nmcconaty@somdnews.com