WINDUSTRY PRESENTS CASE STUDIES

Aggregation in Southwest Minnesota Reading, Writing, and Wind Energy In early 2003 the Minnesota Public Utilities Many schools, particularly in Iowa and Minnesota, Community Wind Energy Commission approved a new powerline to carry wind are seeing as a strong investment for generated electricity from southwest Minnesota to the generating a new revenue stream, saving money on WHAT IS COMMUNITY WIND? Twin Cities. Among the conditions for approval, was energy bills, and creating a new learning tool for a provision to set aside 60 MW of capacity for students. According to the Eldora, Iowa school district Essentially, community wind projects are owned by public entities Kas Brothers Plant 25-year Crop aggregated locally owned wind projects. Two groups superintendent Bill Richard and Roger Kas of Woodstock, Minnesota or privately by local investors. Public entities can mean cities, have organized, Community Wind South and Grove, his district’s 750 became the first farmers in the nation to own their counties, school districts, or municipalities. Local investors could Community Wind North, to take advantage of this kW turbine will generate own utility-scale wind turbines when they installed mean a group of local landowners or citizens; tribal communities; unprecedented opportunity and are planning projects $10,000 to $20,000 per two 750 kW machines in 2001. In 2003, several other local businesses; or other community institutions. to coincide with the new transmission line’s year in energy savings farmers in the area installed wind turbines of their construction in 2007. and revenue for the first own, some WHY COMMUNITY WIND? Some of the ten years, and as much using equity Spirit Lake Community School District aggregated project as ten times that in Iowa is a pioneer for school wind Most wind power development is touted for its environmental investors and leaders. From left to projects with 250 kW and 750 kW amount after their loan benefits, its use of a domestic energy resource, and the economic all using right: Lisa Daniels of machines. is paid back in 2012. development it brings to rural communities. Community wind Minnesota’s Windustry, Lincoln County Commissioner projects offer all these advantages plus significantly more potential production Jim Nichols, George for local economic benefit. Locally owned projects keep most of the incentive of Crocker of the North Rural Electric 1.5¢ per American Water energy sales revenue in the community and nearly always make a Office, and Dan Juhl Among the groups benefiting from the USDA kilowatt-hour concerted effort to maximize local economic development by using Richard Kas, Roger Kas, and Dan Juhl (middle) of of DanMar & program are rural electric cooperatives DanMar & Associates, a pioneer in developing for projects Associates. local suppliers, contractors, and financing whenever possible. interested in developing wind power. Three RECs models for locally owned wind projects. under 2 MW. received USDA grants in 2003, including Federated Rural Electric Association in Jackson, Minnesota, RECENT AND UPCOMING REPORTS Breaking Trail for Native American Nobles Electric of Worthington, Several recent and soon to be published reports on community Minwind: A “Cooperative” Model Wind Power Minnesota, and the Illinois Rural Electric Cooperative In 2002, two groups of farmers in Luverne, Minnesota wind analyze the economic benefits and public policies related to The Rosebud Sioux Tribe of South Dakota installed (IREC) of Pike County, Illinois. pioneered a new wind project model that allows local community wind: the first Native American owned utility-scale wind The wind farmers to pool their resources to develop the A Survey of State Support for Community Wind Power Development, by Mark turbine in early 2003. project team economic potential of wind power for their community. at Federated Bollinger for Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the Clean Energy Northern Great Plains Minwind I and II now have Cooperative States Alliance, published March 2004. tribes, who own some of Electric. two 950 kW turbines each the windiest land anywhere, Guidebook for Communities to Evaluate Impacts of Wind Power Development, and Minwind III-IX are see this turbine as a first by ECONorthwest, sponsored by the State of Washington Office of planning construction in step toward much bigger Community, Trade, and Economic Development and the Energy Trust of 2004. All together, the and more ambitious wind Oregon among others. Scheduled for release in spring 2004. Minwind projects involve projects. Wisconsin Community Based Windpower Business Plan, by Cooperative more than 200 people in Development Services for Wisconsin Focus on Energy, published in the Luverne area and have Intertribal Council on Utility Policy September 2003. generated enormous inter- President Patrick Spears (left) and Intertribal COUP Secretary Robert Municipal Utilities and Agencies est in other communities A report comparing the economic impacts of different community devel- Gough (right). Municipal utility projects are one of the most common looking for a way to Photo courtesy of Intertribal COUP. opment models by Renewable Energy Policy Project for Wind Powering models of community wind energy. There are examples Minwind project leaders Mark promote local ownership of America. Willers (left) and Tom Arends all over the country, from states like Iowa and Minnesota wind projects. (right). where community wind thrives, to the leading wind Our Wind Co-op power states of California and Texas, to states where LEARN MORE Our Wind Co-op is a unique cooperative encouraging municipal projects represent the first utility-scale wind Community wind energy is becoming an increasingly important USDA Funds Community Wind Projects farmers, ranchers, and rural facilities to invest in turbine installations, such as Massachusetts, Michigan, element in the wind industry as a tool for building local support and In 2002, for the first time ever, the federal farm bill small-scale wind turbines across the Pacific Northwest. and Ohio. in rural economies as we see farmers discussing things like intercon- included a renewable energy title. It established the Five small turbines are currently installed in Montana nection and getting involved with regulatory proceedings and energy U.S. Department of Agriculture’s renewable energy and Washington state with at least ten total planned policy debates. More information on opportunities and challenges program, which provided $7.4 for the million in grants for 35 wind end of related to community wind will be presented at Windustry’s national projects in 2003, nearly all of 2004. Community Wind Energy conference on June 23rd and 24th in which could be considered Minneapolis. Visit: www.communitywindenergy.org community wind.

The first operational wind The citizens of Hull, Massachusetts installed the first commercial-scale project funded by the USDA municipal on the east coast in December 2001. Their 660 kW program is a 35 kW turbine in turbine has allowed the municipal light plant to discontinue billing for 2105 First Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55404 Pope County, Minnesota powering the town’s streetlights and traffic signals, saving the Hull’s 11,000 612.870.3461 phone 612.870.4846 fax owned by a local farmer and A 10 kW turbine in Glacier, Montana. citizens more than $50,000 per year. Hull is now considering installing a www.windustry.org his former farmhand. Photo Courtesy of Northwest SEED. second, much larger turbine along side Hull Wind 1 on Point.