Officials are putting a figurative wet finger into the wind to discern how Whidbey Islanders would feel about a wind turbine electrical power plant located at the Greenbank Farm.
Although not promoting it by any means, two Port of Coupeville commissioners on Friday gave life to the wind turbine idea simply by agreeing to ask Island County to make it a planning possibility.
Meeting in their tiny office at the foot of the Coupeville wharf, commissioners Benye Weber and Mike Canfield approved a motion to ask the county commissioners to list a wind turbine as a possible use of farm property. The port owns the farm, but the county approves regulations governing development.
Weber said the move was made simply to prompt public discussion of the issue among islanders. “Let’s be open and receptive to establishing a dialogue to see what they have to say,” she said.
As a result of the motion’s approval, the county will be asked to consider listing wind turbines as a “conditional use” at the farm. Such a use would require public hearings before being approved.
“It’s still a matter for the community, so I have no problem recommending it,” said Commissioner Canfield.
The idea of placing a wind turbine at the farm was floated by an organization called Northwest SEED (Sustainable Energy for Economic Development). Representatives could not be immediately contacted Friday, but their web site states its goals as “building partnerships to mobilize consumers and maximize local benefits from harvesting home grown energy resources.”
According to Laura Blankenship, Greenbank Farm manager, Northwest SEED landed a grant to erect 10 demonstration wind-powered turbines around the state. She received an application form asking if the Greenbank Farm would be interested, and she filled it out and sent it back.
On Thursday, a regular meeting of the Greenbank Farm Management Group attracted only two board members, Clarke Harvey and Marcia Comer. They discussed the wind turbine proposal briefly at their Whidbey Pies Cafe meeting place, and expressed interest and concern.
Wind turbines have been talked about for years by people interested in the publicly-owned Greenbank Farm, Blankenship said. They’re even mentioned as a possibility in the farm’s long-range plan. “But would the community support having a wind turbine up there?” she said, referring to the top of the hill.
Harvey said wind studies have been done at the farm and as he understood the results, there’s not enough wind for a commercially viable wind turbine.
Blankenship said that Northwest SEED simply wants a demonstration site with public facilities nearby they could use for educational purposes. However, she was told the generator might produce 1,200 kilowatts of power, which is more than the farm uses in a typical month.
“Here’s an opportunity,” Blankenship said. “Let’s put it on the table.”
Being the only two board members present, Harvey and Comer made no recommendation to the port. Comer, however, worried that any wind turbine would prompt negative reaction. “I liken it to a cell tower,” she said. Besides the visual impact, she wondered about noise and the impact of turbine blades on bird life. “The idea of alternative energy sounds great, but I’d like to hear from a lot more people,” she said, adding that she would prefer solar power at the farm.
Harvey agreed “there are all kinds of environmental issues,” but he too wanted to hear more from the public.
The port’s motion was timely as Greenbank Farm zoning, in the form of a Special Review District, is on the county’s front burner. A Planning Commission hearing on the review district is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 28 in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room, Courthouse Annex, Coupeville.
