|
Windmills may be all the rage as alternative energy sources in some areas, but the turbines seem to blow ill wind through the halls of Sussex County government.
Using antiquated regulations dating back to when gas was about 35 cents a gallon, county officials must approve windmills on a case-by-case basis based on lot size. On lots of over 5 acres the sky is the limit; under 5 acres a special-use exception is required.
The board of adjustment can grant that exception only during a public hearing at a cost of $400.
Although others have tried and given up, Gregory Menoche, who has a windmill at his home outside Dagsboro, refuses to slow down in his quest to get county officials to take another look at the outdated regulations. The alternative-energy advocate has twice appeared before the board of adjustment and once before county council to testify on the benefits of wind power for home and business use.
It’s only been during the last six to nine months that requests for windmills started to surface at the board of adjustment - two requests were deferred at the July 21 meeting. Most requests have been approved, but some have been denied based on objections from neighbors.
County officials are starting to review the regulations, but so far there is no clear direction where officials are headed. Some support loosening up the regulations, but most county council members have been silent on the matter. Councilman Vance Phillips, who asked Menoche to appear before council, would say only that council is taking a wait-and-see attitude.
A public workshop
The board of adjustment took a major step July 21, by having a workshop on windmills and solar panels at the insistence of Bud Rickard, county planning and zoning operations manager, who has been charged with collecting information in preparation for updating the regulations. He said he wanted some thoughts on the matter from board members. The message he received was that the county council created the situation and needed to rectify it.
“We need to put this back in county council’s lap,” board member John Mills told Menoche. “They need to consult the experts and write the ordiWindmills
nance. We don’t have the ability or the power.”
Rickard said decisions on windmills are being made on information provided by installers. “We have got to have standards,” Rickard said. Those would include permissible noise levels, tower construction, height limitations and safety issues, he said.
Mills said it is also time to address the 5-acre requirement, but that falls into the realm of county council. Menoche was in attendance at the workshop after being told to attend when he presented his views to county council. He is starting to feel a little like a ping-pong ball.
Each time he has appeared before one or the other board, he has received conflicting information. Council members told him to go back to the board of adjustment; the board told him to go back to council.
Undaunted, Menoche offered his thoughts to the board, for a second time, for their consideration. He said the 5-acre minimum lot size should be reduced to 1/2 acre or 1 acre, and the fee should be reduced to $100.
Menoche did not have to worry about the 5-acre requirement because he lives on a large farm.
He said was willing to provide any information the board might need and would also provide a tour of his windmill. Although a little frustrated, Menoche left the workshop with a ray of hope. Rickard said he would take him up on his invitation to visit his windmill.
Menoche so impressed with wind power he gets in the business
Gregory Menoche, who put up a 2-kilowatt windmill at his home on family farmland off Route 26 near Dagsboro, was so impressed with the kilowatt savings that he is now in the windmill installation business. Rarely a day goes by that someone doesn’t stop by to get information. “The interest has been phenomenal,” he said.
He first read about the technology in an issue of Popular Mechanics and did the installation himself.
During the spring and early summer, Menoche said, he was able to trim kilowatt usage by as much as 50 percent to 65 percent. With air conditioning units running, the reduction has been closer to 15 percent.
His ultimate goal is to erect another 2-kilowatt windmill and add in solar power to his alternative-energy system. “I hope to cut kilowatt usage by 90 percent,” he said. In essence, his power bill will be about 10 percent of what is it is today.
He said the windmill is designed for 20 years of maintenance-free operation and will withstand wind speeds up to 140 mph. The cost for the system Menoche has, complete with installation, electric hookup and county permits, is about $13,000 with $4,500 in Green Energy rebates for a total out-of-pocket cost of about $8,500 to $9,000.
|
