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LIPA Dedicates Two Wind Turbines at Shoreham
Located Near Defunct Nuclear Plant, LIPA’s New Land-Based Turbines Symbolize LI’s Energy Future: Renewables

Shoreham, NY – January 25, 2005 – Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) Chairman Richard M. Kessel joined anti-Shoreham activists, former and present LIPA Trustees, and present-day environmental leaders and elected officials in dedicating two new wind turbines that are producing electricity for Long Island’s power grid on the site of the defunct Shoreham nuclear power plant decommissioned by the Authority a decade ago.

Capable of generating as much as 200,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity annually, the 100-foot high turbine towers and 25-foot blades that catch the wind blowing in off the sound stand as bold symbols of Long Island’s energy future: Renewables.

“We stand in the shadow of a modern-day Stonehenge, a multi-billion dollar monument to a failed energy policy, to formally commission the operation of a renewable energy technology that will harness the power of the wind for the benefit of Long Island’s environment,” said Mr. Kessel while standing near the latest additions to LIPA’s wind power initiative. “These wind turbines symbolize the future of renewable power on Long Island as advanced by Governor Pataki, and underscore the need to add more renewable generating technology to our mix of on-island resources in the future.”

The two, 50 kilowatt (kW) AOC wind turbines, situated on a 47-acre parcel of property owned by LIPA at Shoreham, are part of LIPA’s Clean Energy Initiative (CEI), a multi-year $355-million program implemented at Governor George E. Pataki’s direction to promote energy conservation and efficiency, and to research, develop and implement the use of alternative energy technologies such as wind and solar power, and fuel cells.

The Shoreham wind project is the most recent development in LIPA's Land-Based Wind Turbine Demonstration Program, which is being advanced in cooperation with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). NYSERDA is providing grant funding for the installation of the land-based turbines as part of its research and development efforts.

“One of the key components of the State’s Energy Plan is to increase the use of renewable energy,” said NYSERDA President Peter Smith. “Certainly, Governor Pataki has made a clear commitment to that goal, and I’m pleased that NYSERDA has been able to partner with LIPA on this initiative to help deliver the benefits of renewable energy to Long Island.”

LIPA, working with FPL Energy, is also in the process of developing a large-scale offshore wind generating project capable of producing about 140 megawatts (MW) of electricity, which is enough to supply more than 40,000 average-sized homes. LIPA’s offshore wind project will be located south west of Robert Moses State Park and is scheduled for commercial operation in the summer 2008.

“This is a positive step in the right direction,” said Sid Bail, President of the Wading River Civic Association. “I agree with LIPA that this is the best way to put the ghost of Shoreham behind us.”

“We are pleased that LIPA has located its newest wind turbines at Shoreham,” said Mary Daum of the Shoreham Civic Organization. “We look forward to the day when Shoreham is no longer synonymous with a failed nuclear power plant, but instead is recognized as a key participant in LIPA’s commitment to clean, renewable energy technology.”

“This marks the end of an era and the beginning of another,” said Gordian Raacke, Executive Director of Renewable Energy Long Island (RELI). “While these two wind turbines are dwarfed by the colossal reactor behind them, they represent a powerful glimpse of things to come. What we are witnessing today is a gradual but gigantic shift in public policy priorities, a powerful desire to replace environmentally destructive energy technologies of the past with clean and sustainable energy choices of the 21st Century.”

“These state-of-the-art wind turbines are a harbinger for the future growth of renewable energy on Long Island and throughout New York,” said Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director, Citizens Campaign for the Environment. “Advancing wind power allows us to replace dirty, dangerous nuclear technology of the past with clean, safe technology for the future.”

“In the shadow of the fiasco that is the Shoreham nuclear power plant, Long Island is now making a turn towards alternative energy technologies,” said Neal Lewis, Executive Director of the Long Island Neighborhood Network. “The dedication of these wind turbines is representative of Long Island’s efforts to become a leader in promoting clean, safe, renewable sources of energy generation.”

About The Turbines

The wind turbines are located about 1,000 feet north of North Country Road, and are about 300 feet apart. Each turbine occupies a ground area of about 35 feet by 25 feet. The 100-foot high wind turbine towers have three 25-foot blades to catch the wind.

Combined the turbines are capable of generating about 150,000 to 200,000 kilowatt-hours of energy each year, enough to power about 16 to 20 average-sized Long Island homes. The operation of these wind turbines will eliminate the emissions of as much 800 lbs of Sulfur dioxide, 300 lbs of Nitrous Oxides, 200,000 lbs Carbon dioxide per year.

The turbines are designed for downwind operation, having a yaw bearing that allows the blades to track the wind and foster proper alignment. A Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) is used to release or apply the parking brake within certain operating parameters. With sustained winds at the hub of at least 11 mph, the PLC operates to release the parking brake. The previously locked blades then begin to spin and, at an appropriate speed, the generator begins to feed power to the grid. Similarly, at sustained winds of about 50 mph, the turbines will automatically shut down to protect them for being damaged by excessive winds.

At a distance of 600 feet, sound from small wind turbines is less than background noise in the average home or office, or from light road traffic from inside a car, or from the wind itself.

Wind turbine units of this type have been successfully tested by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and are in operation at multiple sites throughout the world.

To learn more about LIPA’s Clean Energy Initiative and its alternative energy technology efforts, go to the Authority’s Web site at www.lipower.org.