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Two hundred and sixty-foot windmills might soon be dotting the skyline in eastern Pottawattamie County.

The Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors approved the first reading of an ordinance on assessment of wind energy conversion property and a zoning amendment for non-commercial wind turbines. . . .

Supervisor chairman Delbert King said MidAmerican Energy plans on building 67 turbines in Layton, Knox, Lincoln and Valley townships in the northeast part of the county.

The second consideration is scheduled for May 28, and King said four turbines could go up within 60 days. The turbines are expected to cost $2 million, and landowners will receive between $5,000 and $6,000 from MidAmerican a year to lease the ground they are built on. . . .

the1wags wrote:Is it an incentive thing or what?

The Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the final reading of an ordinance on assessment of wind energy conversion property and a zoning amendment for noncommercial wind turbines. . . .

King said four turbines could go up within 60 days. The turbines are expected to cost $2 million, and landowners will receive between $5,000 and $6,000 a year from MidAmerican to lease the ground they are built on. . . .

MidAmerican Energy Co. received approval from the Iowa Utilities Board Monday for a 100.5-megawatt wind energy project in Pottawattamie County.

MidAmerican will install 67 1.5-megawatt General Electric wind turbines near Walnut in Layton, Knox, Lincoln and Valley townships, a news release from the company stated.

Another six units will be added to the existing Pomeroy Wind Project in Pocahontas County. The company plans to have the new turbines operating by year's end.

With the new units, MidAmerican will have 800 wind turbines totaling 1,231.8 megawatts of generation capacity - enough to power 425,000 U.S. homes. The addition will help the company, which entered the wind energy field in 2004, maintain its national ranking as the leading owner of wind generation capacity among regulated utilities. . . .

Continuing its strong development in wind generation, MidAmerican Energy Co. is expanding its Walnut Wind Project in Pottawattamie County.

Earlier this year, MidAmerican announced plans for 67 wind turbines to be built and place in service by the end of the year near Walnut. In recent months, MidAmerican was able to acquire additional wind turbines, allowing the company to expand the project by 35 units.

MidAmerican expects to have the entire Walnut Wind Project - a total of 153 megawatts - online by the end of the year. The development features 102 General Electric 1.5-megawatt turbines. . . .

With the expansion, MidAmerican plans to have 833 wind turbines with a total of 1,284.3 megawatts of generation capacity, online by the end of the year. That commitment will help maintain the company's national ranking as one of the leading owners of wind generation capacity among regulated utilities. . . .

In addition to the investment MidAmerican is making in non-carbon electric generating capacity, the company is investing approximately $400 million on environmental upgrades to reduce emissions at its power plants by the end of 2009. When that work is completed, there will be a 44 percent reduction in emissions of nitrogen oxides and a 38 percent reduction in emissions of sulfur dioxide from MidAmerican's coal-fueled power plants.

Bryan1117 wrote:I noticed that near the town of Adair, IA, which is at mile-marker 75 on Interstate 80 east of Omaha

Bryan1117 wrote:Last week, while I was driving to Eastern Iowa for a business trip, I noticed that near the town of Adair, IA, which is at mile-marker 75 on Interstate 80 east of Omaha, there are several HUGE wind turbines (25 already up, while another 40 or so in the beginning stages of being installed out there) going up along and south of the Interstate. The blades on the turbines were almost as tall as the tower supporting them, probably 250 feet from tip to tip... Very impressive sight to see in the middle of otherwise hills and farmland in West Central Iowa and a sign that Iowa really has its energy policies heading in the right direction.

www.ketv.com wrote:Giant wind turbines are showing up more and more across the state, especially in the town of Walnut, where MidAmerica Energy plans to have 102 turbines running by the end of the year.

www.ketv.com wrote:But the process of erecting the behemoth energy-producing machines -- as tall as a 26-story building -- is a logistical feat in itself.

They spin a diameter that's about as wide as a football field, capturing the state's most abundant resource -- the wind.

That resource is converted into enough renewable energy to pay for the turbines themselves, which come with an individual $4 million price tag.

By the end of the year, MidAmerica Energy hopes to have 833 turbines on eight windfarms across the state.

www.omaha.com wrote:DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — New figures show that Iowa remains No. 2 in the nation in wind power.

The American Wind Energy Association reported this week that Iowa added 160 megawatts of wind-generation capacity in the second quarter of the year, bringing its generation capacity to 3,043.

Texas remains far ahead of Iowa in wind energy 8,361 megawatts. Behind Iowa is California with 2,787 megawatts.

Officials say Iowa’s additional capacity in the second quarter came from one wind farm — an 80-turbine project in Worth County, developed by Iberdrola Renewables.

Officials say four new projects are under construction.

Brad wrote:I could not believe how many Wind Turbines I saw when I drove through Iowa the other day!

Iowa still No. 2 in wind power

http://www.omaha.com/article/20090729/MONEY/707299908

www.omaha.com wrote:DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — New figures show that Iowa remains No. 2 in the nation in wind power.

The American Wind Energy Association reported this week that Iowa added 160 megawatts of wind-generation capacity in the second quarter of the year, bringing its generation capacity to 3,043.

Texas remains far ahead of Iowa in wind energy 8,361 megawatts. Behind Iowa is California with 2,787 megawatts.

Officials say Iowa’s additional capacity in the second quarter came from one wind farm — an 80-turbine project in Worth County, developed by Iberdrola Renewables.

Officials say four new projects are under construction.

the1wags wrote:Mark it down! DTO says something good about Iowa.  :shock:

Kidding aside, it is frustrating to know that Nebraska has more wind power potential than Iowa and is FAR, FAR behind. I don't know for sure, but I'm almost certain Iowa might have passed state laws creating tax breaks for wind power.

Once again, it's the federal government which is providing most of the incentives for using wind power... and our public utilities don't qualify (they don't pay taxes).

Stargazer wrote:Does anyone expect wind energy to replace conventional power?  I only expect it to enable us to periodically 'turn down the thermostat' on the coal fired plant.

Brad wrote:programmable thermostat

almighty_tuna wrote:

Brad wrote:programmable thermostat

[derail]
How well do those work, btw?  We still have our original one from the 70s.  Looks like a PITA to replace, too.
[/derail]

MidAmerican Energy Company encourages visitors to the Iowa State Fair to stop by the company’s visitors center to learn more about wind generation. . .

The towers reach skyward with giant, almost surreal blades slicing through the air. The wind towers that now dot the Iowa landscape in several locations, including northeastern Pottawattamie County, are an impressive sight. . . .

Iowa is now the second-largest producer of wind energy in the nation, trailing only Texas, according to the Iowa Energy Center, which is administered by Iowa State University. . .

As of the end of 2008, the state had a wind power generating capacity of 2,789.3 megawatts, according to http://www.nationalwind.com. Another 20 megawatts of capacity were under construction.

The Iowa Utilities Board has estimated that 15 percent of the state’s power is now generated by wind energy, up from 5 percent just three years ago. Iowa is now home to 11 percent of the nation’s wind power generating capacity. . . .

Wind energy accounts for up to 20 percent of Iowa's total electricity production, and is helping to keep the state's power costs among the lowest in the nation, a study released Wednesday showed.

Authors of the study said it debunks arguments that alternative energy and other measures to combat climate change are too expensive. The study was conducted by the Iowa Policy Project, a nonpartisan, nonprofit research organization based in Iowa City. . . .

Brad wrote:It takes 5 min to replace.... If you know how to use a screwdriver and know the difference between red, green, blue, and yellow.

It works great.  Bumps up a few degrees when i am at work and sleeping and you can program the weekend differently.  Saves a lot of money.

AP on Omaha World-Herald wrote:MidAmerican Energy officials said winds blew hard enough on Monday and Tuesday for wind turbines to provide all of the power needed to meet its customers’ needs for the state.

Cole Epley / World-Herald staff writer wrote:Also this week, two new wind farms owned by Des Moines-based MidAmerican Energy began full operation in central Iowa. MidAmerican is a division of Berkshire Hathaway Energy.

Between the two sites, there are 169 wind turbines capable of generating 338 megawatts’ worth of electricity. They are part of MidAmerican’s Wind XI project, a $3.6 billion plan through which the utility will build enough new wind capacity to supply 90 percent of its retail customers’ usage by 2020.

At the same time, the company will “repower” hundreds of GE wind turbines at existing sites like the one near Walnut, Iowa, about 45 miles east of Omaha.