COLORADO Anemometer Loan Program

Wednesday, August 18, 2004

The Colorado Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation (OEMC) has chosen Sustainable Settings’ whole systems learning center at Thompson Creek Ranch in Pitkin County to receive an anemometer through its Anemometer Loan Program.  This program works through a partnership with matching funds from U.S. Department of Energy’s Wind Powering America Program.  Anemometers are wind-measuring devices that are mounted atop towers.  OEMC purchased seven 20-meter anemometer towers and anemometers, to be installed in Colorado, to collect site-specific wind data.  The tower and anemometer were raised at Sustainable Settings in August.

The goal of OEMC's anemometer loan program is to capture the data collected by the anemometers, such as the direction, force and speed of wind. The data collected from the anemometer will be interpreted and analyzed by a third-party source working with OEMC.  The anemometers will generally collect data for a period of one year.  After the site’s wind data has been collected, the anemometers will be moved to other sites. The data collected will be available to the public.

“OEMC initiated this program due to the tremendous interest in generating wind energy,” said Rick Grice, OEMC Executive Director.  “Our goal is to assist communities, landowners, and other stakeholders in making informed decisions on a site’s wind energy resources. The data collected from the anemometers is invaluable in this process.”

The anemometers were first installed in 2003 to locations in Lamar, Julesburg, Aurora, Montrose, Leadville; Walden, and Meeker. Many of the original sites have completed their data collection and the anemometers have been removed and installed in new locations such as Carbondale, Sedgwick, Deer Trail and Paonia.

Site selections are based on existing statewide wind mapping information as well as the participant’s stated purpose for wind energy utilization. Additionally, selections were based on the awareness of current electric supplier's net metering and interconnection policies, distance to transmission lines, transmission capacity availability, and likely funding for the wind project.

Sustainable Settings has been given approval in their master plan by Pitkin County’s Board of County Commissioners to install a 110 foot tower and wind generator.  This year-long study will provide important data in understanding what energy potential there is at Sustainable Settings’ ranch site. This study will also lead to the raising of the wind generating tower which is projected to be a major contributor to Sustainable Settings’ goals of creating a net-energy producing development as laid out in the organization’s Comprehensive Energy Plan.

“Our ranch is strategically located at the confluence of Thompson Creek and The Crystal River. From our first year of observation on site we think that these two drainages offer a wind microclimate that might prove beneficial for wind power generation,” said Brook Le Van, Sustainable Settings director

Sustainable Settings’ is developing a Whole Systems Learning Center to research, demonstrate and conduct educational activities in green development, sustainable agriculture and land stewardship.  The ranch is home to protected open space and a critical wildlife corridor, and is host to sustainably managed livestock, organic orchards and production gardens.
 
For more information, click here for Sustainable Settings’ web site or you can contact them by e-mail or call (970) 963-6107.

Colorado Governor’s Office of Energy Management and Conservation Program Contact Information
To learn more about the anemometer loan program, contact OEMC’s Olga Erlich at (303) 894-2383 x1218 or by e-mail.   For information on DOE’s Wind Powering America Program, click here.

Click here for information on Anemometer Loan programs in other states.

Source: Colorado Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation

Links to State Anemometer Loan Programs

Alabama

Alaska

Colorado

Idaho

Kentucky

Maine

Massachusetts

Missouri

Montana

Nevada

North Carolina
North Carolina Coastal Areas

North Dakota

Oklahoma

Oregon

South Dakota

Utah

Virginia