Grande Prairie Micro-Wind Pilot to Reshape Local By-Laws

As Alberta's appetite for wind energy increases, urban centres are contending with more requests for micro-wind turbines. This presents both regulatory and stakeholder challenges as wind energy literally comes to our backyards.

The Town of Grande Prairie is no exception, says Drennen Hallett, founder and CEO of Golden Sheep Power Inc., a new player in Alberta's wind energy market.

"The Grande Prairie and Peace River region has shown a strong interest in wind as an alternative form of energy," says Hallett. "But the existing land-use by-laws for Grande Prairie weren't designed to accommodate residential wind energy.  So there's a challenge to proceed in a way that balances citizen concerns with the value wind power can bring to the city."

Wind Turbine

Last March, Hallett approached the City of Grande Prairie and ATCO Electric about a pilot project to introduce wind to the city. Hallett and city officials eventually settled on a location for a four-kilowatt (kW), vertical-axis turbine, scheduled for installation in early 2009. The Pete Eager Fire Station was deemed the best site available to assess both visual and auditory concerns residents might have.

"Our intention is to solicit feedback from our citizens to reshape our by-laws to bring wind power into the city in an appropriate way, "says Valerie Norris-Kirk, the city's manager of developing and permitting.

According to Hallett, the turbine will be a residential-sized unit, averaging 800 to 1,200 kW hours of energy per month during peak conditions. This production meets the national average consumption of 750 to 900 kW hours per month, allowing it to roughly achieve net-zero consumption from the grid.

While the installation cost of about $28,000 may seem high, Hallett estimates the payback period, in electricity savings, would be about eight to 13 years for the average Grande Prairie house.

"Over the long term these turbines provide substantial cost savings," says Hallett "and a self-producer can reduce carbon emissions by about 1.2 tonnes per year, which is significant."

"We are very interested in taking a leadership role in exploring alternative energy sources and supporting innovation," says Mayor Dwight Logan. "The environment is a key concern for this council.  We look forward to the outcome of this pilot project and the potential benefits to Grande Prairie."