Talbot County owns 3 wind turbines at the biosolids facility on Klondike Road, installed around 2011, that stopped generating electricity around 2016, and the county considered selling them in 2021. In March 2024, the fund Helping Talbot Public Spaces Generate Renewable Energy at Mid-Shore Community Foundation donated the money to restore 2 of the turbines to operation, and they resumed generating about 60,000 kilowatt-hours per turbine annually.
The fund offered to pay to repair the 3rd turbine if the county would pay for a contract with the manufacturer for annual maintenance and monitoring, estimated at about $2000 per turbine per year. As fund manager, I anticipated that such annual maintenance would result in 4 years of reliable operation before donors would be called on to fund major repairs. Since each turbine saves Talbot taxpayers about $6000 annually in electricity, the maintenance cost seems justifiable.
Peter Yungbluth
Talbot County
One Response
Fascinating! As the Town of Easton owns Easton Utilities, it is appropriate that its general manager and board members report to the Town Council on this matter. Furthermore, it is timely for the Town to appoint a citizen’s committee with the guidance of a professional consultancy to identify and report on the viability of more turbines, and of other types in broad usage nationally. That said, it’s no secret that commercial and residential roof-top solar paneling has revolutionized our options, so that this should be included in the study. ….. But then, realizing that Washington persists in promoting coal and crude in its savage takedown of renewables, Easton has a highly successful record for innovation and forward thinking. It’s time to sharpen our pencils.