Image source: AWEA

Editor’s note: Since David was only able to spend one day at WINDPOWER 2007, we asked Jessica Jensen, co-founder of Low Impact Living, to offer her take on the rest of the conference. Here are her impressions of Day 2.

Day 2 at WINDPOWER 2007, the national wind energy expo hosted by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) continued to be exciting. With over 400 companies exhibiting and 6000+ visitors, this is by far the largest wind energy conference in the U.S. Yesterday’s events focused on the small wind energy market. Small wind is defined as systems producing < 100 KWs. Home wind-power systems typically require 1-10 KW (generated by one turbine) and farms and small businesses can use anywhere between 10-100 KW.

The day started with an excellent session on “Growing the Market for Distributed Wind Energy.” Trudy Forsyth of the National Renewable Energy Lab spoke both of very encouraging growth in the small wind market but also about the obstacles to greater growth. Certain states– including California, New York, Vermont and Massachusetts offer strong financial incentives for investment in wind systems and also make the permitting processes navigable.

Many other states, however, do not help make wind an attractive option for consumers and small businesses– even states with progressive solar energy support policies. Andy Kruse, Co-founder of Southwest Wind Power (one of the big firms in the small wind market distribution) commented that, “25 states have significant support for solar– and it’s more like 4-5 states on the wind side.” He added that SWWP is partnering with another other major US small wind power firm, Bergey Windpower, on lobbying for better policy support in Colorado and Pennsylvania. Almost everyone speaking today heralded the need for better federal and state level incentives to make the investment in small wind technologies appealing to consumers and small businesses– so the lobbyists have their work cut out for them.

Image source: AWEABut even with the policy hurdles still to be overcome, the growth in the small wind industry seems to be very strong. Steve Wilke, Sales & Customer Service for Bergey Windpower, wouldn’t share unit or dollar specifics but noted that Bergey is doubling its production capacity this year to meet demand. He cites improved state-level support for financial incentives and growing consciousness about the need for green power alternatives. Bergey’s primary production facility is co-located with the company headquarters in Norman, OK. The company has also recently opened a new manufacturing facility in China. “We’re doing a lot of development in China– the demand is huge,” he added. Other manufacturers echoed the sentiment that growth is steep in the small wind market both in the US and abroad.

One of the most compelling presentations at the end of day focused on wind energy as a power solution for schools. As it turns out, schools are often ideal candidates for wind power. Schools typically have the land and clearance needed for turbines. They also have access to cheap capital and are comfortable with payback periods in excess of 8-10 years. The market potential for the school segment is massive: there are over 5,000 schools in Texas alone and almost all of them would need systems around 50 KW. Developing this market across the US would not only replace the use of polluting coal-fired plant capacity but would also help to drive down costs in the wind-system manufacturing industry by growing production volume. So tell your kids to ask their principals if they have looked into wind power.

Today was the conference’s last day, so if you were in Los Angeles, we hope you had a chance to stop by. It’s very heartening to see so many companies and people dedicated to renewable energy.

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