Only the Truth!

 Quote: “I wouldn’t want it in my back yard.” Was what we heard the Templeton Municipal Light and Water plant General Manager tell a resident that lives nearest to the 1.7 megawatt wind turbine in Templeton at a meeting Tuesday. As with others like this windmill, it has a gearbox problem and could cost more than it will ever produce over the life of the unit. Investigation done on other same models have concluded that possible housing issues not strong enough to handle the stress of the oversized props and output increases cause gearbox failures. Only models of lower output and smaller blade size are still problem free. The gamble with the wind energy is at best a poor one. Loans and cost to repair can easily eat away any efficiency that we thought to see. No Audit result and cost certification are nothing but a problem also. Hiding and cover-ups to keep secrets about it are no longer possible.

Questions and answers are the only way to get to the decisions needed to be made. Through admission the management and commission alike both say they leave it up to someone else “Experts” to tell them whats wrong with it!  I only hope they leave the decision to repair or not up to the Experts too. The neighbors have complained and wonder if the homes they now have will ever be what they want it to be, safe. With many noise and flicker problems brushed off and all but ignored by TMLWP one wonders where is the compassion and why did the story change about the effects on the neighbors close by. Was Safety from ice throw and other unknown hazards a part of the research done prior to installing the turbine? Management quick to discredit the health effects and with more and more other wind projects being removed and decommissioned Templeton is going to have to make a choice for the problems that previous management and this commission allowed in Templeton. Who could think this could be a safe thing to live and play under? Why if it was checked out and thought out carefully would the problems arise we now have?  The answer to that and many other things at TMLWP are what we all need to find out! TMLWP has gambled and is sure to lose.  With a very poor track record and the failure of others so expensive  we need to have this decision made by ” we the people” and not just them the TMLWP. The Templeton people will own this equipment and are the ones who need to be involved as we have moved into a power production town and have let the department stumble along until now. As we ask more questions about our turbine and get more bad news that we have more problems. It should be no surprise when we are told your rates will rise. Princeton’s two turbines are the same and there the rates are the highest after the gearbox in one of theirs failed. When General Manager Brian Allen said Princeton light wants to sell the turbines at a loss and as the cost to repair will outweigh the money saved it can only raise rates for customers. After expected life the removal is sometimes not planned for the high costs in the end to remove the unit. Cost unknown and lack of expertise as always ends poorly. With only limited wind and expenses unknown what would be the will of the people. Is it up to TMLWP to make the choice to gamble more or is it up to the people to find solutions on how the towns Equipment will get handled?” Correction” we don’t own it! We will own it when we finish the payments, 10 years? More Question and more answers will be needed for the Templeton light to shine as bright as it should.

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Dave Smart