The Erie School District in Illinois is set to become the first school district in that state, and possibly the nation, to be powered entirely by wind energy.
This story on the Quad-Cities Online web site says construction could start next week after nearly two years of delays:
The most recent delay came last fall from a property owner who didn’t want the wind turbine blades traveling over his farm’s airspace.
The school district decided to move the location for its wind turbine. Mr. Ryan said it’s about 60 to 70 feet away from the original site. It remains on the middle school property.
“Progress is being made,” Mr. Ryan said. “They started digging a new foundation just the other day. The rebar and foundation material is scheduled to be in next week sometime.”
Mr. Ryan said the 230-foot tower will have 95-foot blades. He said Johnson Controls, Moline, is still overseeing the project. He said Johnson Controls agreed to assume the costs of moving the turbine. Once the turbine is up and running, officials estimate it will save the district an estimated $4.5 to $5.5 million in energy costs over the next 30 years.