GMP evaluates wind farm project in Lowell

Green Mountain Power is continuing to investigate the possibility of a seventeen-turbine wind farm outside of Lowell Mountain, in Orleans County, Vermont. The area has been determined to be an excellent location for generating wind power, but additional evaluations must still be completed before the project is approved.

The idea of a wind farm in Lowell was first proposed by Kingdom Community Wind, an organization of residents and landowners interested in pursuing wind power in Vermont. KCW was developed by Trip Wileman, founder of Moose Mountain Forestry and owner of the land where the wind farm would be built. After assessing the wind resources in the area, KCW approached GMP and the Vermont Electric Co-Op about entering into a partnership.

A quote from the KMC website states that GMP president and CEO Mary Powell was attracted to the proposal because the company was seeking energy sources that were “low cost, low in carbon emissions and reliable.”

Dave Hallquist, CEO of VEC, concurred, saying that there had been growing demand from consumers for energy that was local, renewable, and affordable - with very low carbon emissions. “Wind power fits all of that,” he said.

Should the project be finalized, Hallquist said that GMP would fund the construction. The energy output would then be divided between GMP customers and VEC ratepayers.

According to Hallquist the future of the project mainly depends on cost. Although the location has been judged to be fit for harnessing wind power, the final price tag must be calculated before any further actions will be taken. If the cost is determined to be satisfactory, they will begin filing for all of the building permits required by Act 248.

Environmental concerns also must be taken into consideration. With assistance from Vermont Environmental Research Associates, Wileman and KCW have been conducting tests to gauge the effects that a wind farm might have on local plant and animal life. Hallquist said that he expected the tests to be completed by the end of the summer. Dorothy Schnure, Manager of Corporate Communications for GMP, said that once the tests were finished, the company would file for a permit to build a meteorological tower on the site.

Hallquist acknowledged the “aesthetic issues” at play in the decision to build a wind farm. Hallquist said that since the billboard ban in 1968, he felt that Vermont had worked hard to preserve an open, rural image, and that he understood the need to maintain that image.

The wind farm is proposed for a 2.5 mile section of the Lowell Mountain range in the Northeast Kingdom community of Lowell. The region was selected for its strong wind resources, with persistent west-northwest winds blowing perpendicular to the ridgeline. If approved, the planned facility would likely consist of seventeen wind turbines, each generating 2.2-2.5 megawatts of electricity, for a possible combined total of 40 megawatts.

KWC says that, if finalized, the wind farm facility would mean $80 million to $125 million for the local economy, in addition to new jobs in construction, operations and maintenance. KWC adds that the project would yield “hundreds of thousands of dollars” into the Vermont Educational Fund through the wind-powered electric generation facilities tax and property tax payments to the Town of Lowell.

GMP's interest in the Lowell site comes at a time when its parent company, Canadian energy company Gaz Metro, is pursuing wind-power projects across the Quebec area. In early July, the company received permission from Quebec's Minister of Natural Resources and Wildlife to begin work on two wind projects with an installed capacity of 272 megawatts in the northeast part of the province. With environmental approval acquired, the company is now applying for construction permits and seeking financing from financial institutions.