Windmill School

Last week I attended “Windmill School” in St. Ignace. Dr. Mary Ann Heidermann, Regional Land Use Educator at the Michigan State University Extension Office spent a little over two hours covering planning and zoning for wind energy. Her presentation focused on wind facility siting and regulation. Though wind energy will be an important part of Michigan’s push to develop sustainable energy sources many cities no not have clear policies and regulations concerning wind energy. Some local ordinances do not even address wind turbines, making them difficult for companies and landowners to determine the best course of action. Wind energy is a large financial investment and the uncertain policies make it even riskier. The packet given to attendees included a copy of Dr. Heidermann’s presentation, model ordinance, guidelines for siting wind energy systems, Huron County’s ordinance, and landowner guidelines for evaluating wind energy production contracts.

Some interesting facts I learned at the workshop include a few general facts about wind energy. he "Michigan Land Use Guidelines for Siting Wind Energy Systems" addresses many concerns about developing wind farms, including, but not limited to, noise, bird deaths, and shadow flicker. These issues are important to consider when incorporating wind energy into local ordinances. TFor instance, local government is responsible for setting local rules about excessive sound or noise. Since noise is a subjective judgment, some people may enjoy sounds that others do not. There are no directly applicable federal or state laws mandating noise levels, but state and local governments commonly use the EPA's advisory document published in 1974 to guide their decision making. When it comes to bird deaths, more birds are killed by house cats in a year than turbines. MSU Extension's Guidelines reports a 2005 estimated annual bird mortality range between 75 to 100 million deaths from house cats, and only 20 to 30 thousand deaths from wind power developments. Enough said. Shadow flicker is a less publicized concern, but may be as, if not more, disturbing than others. Shadow flicker describes what happens when rotating wind turbine blades come between the viewer and sun, creating a shadow. Some people argue that shadow flicker may cause epileptic seizures. Even though there are no documented health affects associated with shadow flicker, the Michigan Siting Guidelines for Wind Energy Systems suggest utility grid systems submit a shadow flicker analysis when requesting a permit.

Though the presentation targeted city planners, wind energy policies will more than effect local officials. Landowners, companies, government officials, and future generations will all be effected by decisions made today about wind energy. I advise anyone concerned about Michigan's energy future to educate themselves about forthcoming energy policies.

For those interested in attending similar events in the future I recommend contacting the MSU Extension Office before registering, to determine if a workshop will be held close to your residence. The workshop set me back $110 (for two seats) and about five hours of drive time. Though I didn’t leave the workshop with a diploma, I left with a better understanding of the challenges and obstacles to developing wind energy in Michigan.

Ticket for a Tree?

Perhaps you have been to an event or at least heard about events trying to become more environmentally-friendly. For instance, Dave Matthews Band partnered with the Nature Conservancy to plant trees to "offset" their carbon intensive tour and used organic cotton in their t-shirts. Other events, such as the Green Festivals, offset their carbon emissions, use biodegradable cutlery, and celebrate sustainable organizations.

Surely there are different methods to "green" events, whether it be offsetting, fair trade souvenirs, or organic food. For the sake of this post I want to focus on the tree-planting idea. Last year I spent about nine months researching voluntary carbon instruments, primarily carbon offsets and renewable energy certificates. Since there are no uniform standards, you can invest in wind energy, methane-capture projects, or plant a tree, for an array of prices. Without going too in-depth on the details (you can read my entire report here) I want to propose an alternative for events to pursue.

Consider any event, let's examine an NBA basketball game. Rather than calculating the game's "carbon footprint" and releasing an article to the local newspaper, how about empowering each individual to make a positive environmental impact. Use the money that would have spent investing in some renewable energy project on the other side of the country to purchase little trees or compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). As everyone leaves the gym employees can hand out their complimentary gift. During the game, messages on the big screen can get fans excited about what they can do with their tree or CFL. You may be thinking, how is a tree of CFL related to basketball in anyway? The truth is, they are not really related. Not directly at least. But fans could receive a lot more perks if the arena spent less paying for electricity by using CFLs or LED lights. Want to make it more relevant? Customize the product presentation to fit the NBA team. The CFL packaging or tree itself are prime for any promotional material.

Sports' team paraphernalia does one thing: it appeals to the majority. Most people attending the games have at least one thing in common: they like basketball and/or they like the team playing. Kids will not be too thrilled with the idea of receiving a tree or light bulb instead of a plastic bobble head toy. Fortunately, this is just an example and could be more easily implemented at business conferences or sustainability-related event.

Personally, I would pick a CFL over a bobble head any day! But then again I am not a twelve year old boy wearing a Detroit Piston's jersey during the NBA finals.

I would love to hear your suggestions for greening events without greenwashing them. Please leave any and all your thoughts in the comments section.