Alternative energy study underway - Colorado Community Media

Three wind towers, or more precisely three anemometers, stand
atop peaks on mine property in a line running southwest to
northeast at elevations from 10,200 feet to 9,700 feet. Anemometers
measure wind parameters used to determine the feasibility for wind
energy. The main tower, 20 meters tall, sits on Little Grouse
Mountain off Colorado Highway 67 between Cripple Creek and Victor.
A second tower, on Guyot Hill, is 10 meters tall. There is also a
tower at the Deadwood head frame.

By By: Suzanne Core

A year-long feasibility study to determine if wind is a viable
alternative energy source to power the main building of the Cripple
Creek & Victor Gold Mining Company is under way.

The mine’s environmental technician, Gary Horton, makes the mile
hike to the top of Little Grouse periodically, regardless of
weather or snow depth, to check the equipment recording the wind
data. Each month he will pull and replace the data plug which has
collected the information from the anemometer. The anemometer
gathers the data and transmits it to the digital equipment in a box
at the base of the pole, where it is stored on the data plug. The
system is called a Wind Explorer.

“The Wind Explorer monitors wind speed and direction, collects
the data and transmits it to the box, where you can see it on the
digital readout,” Horton said. “The data is collected and stored
every half hour on a data plug that we replace each month. The data
plug is sent off for interpretation. At the end of the year we’ll
get a report from the University of North Dakota, which is
interpreting our data.”

Two of the three anemometers have been leased, but the third is
on loan from the state. The Governor’s Office of Energy Management
and Conservation purchased eight anemometers with matching funds
from the U.S. Department of Energy. The anemometers are rotated on
an annual basis throughout the state to qualified applicants. A
number of feasibility studies already have been completed around
Colorado.

CCV has been exploring alternative energy sources, including
biodiesel, solar and wind, for several years, Horton said. If wind
is found to be economically viable, CCV will develop educational
programs to share publicly before proceeding to
converting.

“We need an ‘economic wind,’ which is defined as a wind
averaging 9 to 16 miles per hour on a constant basis,” Horton said.
“If we find we have an economic wind here, we can proceed to the
next step.”

There will be a short presentation on the wind project during
the recycling meeting scheduled for the Victor Community Center at
5:30 p.m. Feb. 27. The public is invited and encouraged to
attend.

For more information, call Horton at 719-689-4014 or go to
www.awea.org/projects/colorado.html,
www.state.co.us/oemc/programs/renewable/anemometer.htm
and