Wind turbines in Hull, MA
A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to visit the town of Hull MA with a small group from the newly re-constituted Tufts Environmental Literacy Institute. (The Literacy Institute, started some years ago by Tony Cortese, has now been resurrected by my two colleagues Jonathan Kenny from the Chemistry department and Ann Rappaport from the Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning department, with a special emphasis on Climate Change). Hull operates two wind turbines, one (a 660 Kw unit installed in 2001) adjacent to its high school and another (a 1.8 Mw unit installed in 2006). I believe they both use Vestas brand turbines.
The town is now in the process of siting four more turbines off the coast of Nantasket Beach, and when this project is completed, all of the town's electricity will be generated from wind. Hull is a pretty small town on Boston Harbor, and through its innovation and willingness to take risks, it now is poised to achieve a high degree of energy independence. My understanding is that the economics of wind energy have changed rather dramatically.
On our visit, we had a tour of the facility. What I found most impressive was how quiet the operation is. With the wind blowing about 30 mph and the rotor spinning at a pretty good clip, there was only a modest hum from the generator and a hissing sound from the propeller. If you'd like to see and read about what Hull has done, go to http://www.hullwind.org .
