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| Narragansett Bay Commission turbine on the Providence waterfront |
Wind turbine
development has been stalled or slowed in several Rhode Island communities, but
two projects expect to reach significant milestones this week.
Providence. Three 364-foot-high turbines on the city
waterfront are on schedule to be generating electricity by Wednesday.
Final tests conclude Tuesday on the 1.5-megawatt turbines installed at the Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC). The three turbines will supply about 40 percent ($800,000) of the electricity used onsite at the regional waste and stormwater treatment facility.
Final tests conclude Tuesday on the 1.5-megawatt turbines installed at the Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC). The three turbines will supply about 40 percent ($800,000) of the electricity used onsite at the regional waste and stormwater treatment facility.
The turbines were
erected in February at Field's Point but additional time was needed to install
connection equipment to the power grid.
The turbines are the
first utility-scale turbines in Providence. Each turbine generates enough
electricity to power between 1,200 and 1,500 homes. About 3,000 tons of carbon
dioxide will be offset annually by the turbines, an amount equal to the
emission from 534 passenger vehicles, according to the NBC.
The project’s $13.5
million cost was funded through the state Clean Water Finance Agency.
The Narragansett Bay
Commission provides waste and stormwater treatment for 10 Rhode Island
communities.
Watch a time-lapse
video of the constriction here.
North Kingstown. A 413-foot-high wind turbine being built in
an upscale housing development is scheduled to get its blades attached this
week. Mark DePasquale is erecting the turbine at the North Kingstown Green
subdivision. Property owners within the development will receive monthly
payments of $150 for having the turbine in their neighborhood.
The turbine is about
50 feet taller than the three NBC turbines but otherwise identical. All four of
the 1.5-megawatt turbines were manufactured in China by Goldwind.
The North Kingstown
turbine is one of several DePasquale plans to build across the state. The
turbine was granted a building permit before the town instituted a moratorium
on wind projects in 2011. A subsequent turbine at Stamp Farm was denied a
permit by the Planning Board.
National Grid expects
the North Kingstown Green turbine to be operational and connected to the
electric grid by the end year.
Sludge gas. The Narragansett Bay Commission also expects
to produce energy from gas released by sludge at its Bucklin Point wastewater
treatment facility in East Providence. A 600-kilowatt combined heat and power
(CHP) system will burn methane to generate heat and electricity for the
facility.
More than 1,000 tons of carbon dioxide
emissions will be saved annually through this biogas project, according to the
NBC. The project is about 50 percent completed and construction is expected to
be finished in early 2013.