wind/solar generator

Cottonwood Dairy Farm owners Paul and Jason Tillotson are hoping for the best of both worlds by contracting with SkyWolf Wind Turbine Corp. for a hybrid wind/solar energy system to partially power their large agricultural operation at 10771 Cook Road in Pavilion.

The Genesee County Planning Board on Thursday night recommended approval of a special use permit and area variance for the Tillotsons to install two 32-foot high, 8.5 kilowatt towers. The panel ruled that since the towers are only 32 feet high, proposed setbacks from the public right-of-way of 555 and 564 feet, respectively, present no significant impact. The current requirement according to Town of Pavilion code is 1,000 feet from the right-of-way.

Planning Director Felipe Oltramari further reinforced the board's decision by stating that the Town of Pavilion would be wise to consider updating its code to base it on tower height instead of a set distance.

"The Town adopted its wind energy system awhile back. It was one of the earlier models, and their thinking was in line with large wind turbines -- 500-foot towers," he said.

The Tillotsons will now have to go before the Town of Pavilion Zoning Board to complete the preliminary process before the wind/solar system is constructed. Paul Tillotson said he's excited about the possibilities.

"It makes a lot of sense to be able to capture both (wind and solar energy)," he said, noting that he's looking to offset some of the significant expense of running a 1,000-acre, 300-cow dairy farm. "We know that the wind in our area is at 12 3/4 (mph) on average, which gives us a 'good' rating."

Gerald Brock, president and CEO of the Geneseo-based SkyWolf Wind Turbine Corp., said the hybrid system packs more power in a smaller package than traditional wind turbines.

"It's already been proven (that it works)," Brock said, mentioning that the system is supplying 80-90 percent of the total electricity of a house in Livonia.

In a press release, Jason Tillotson said his farm recently completed the purchase of five robotic milkers and an automated calf-feeding system, along with other precision agriculture equipment -- moves that allowed them to obtain organic certification. But with that, the Tillotsons' monthly electric energy usage drastically increased.

They said they expect substantial savings by locating the SkyWolf system towers on their farm.

"They're about a couple hundred feet from my house," Paul Tillotson said.

SkyWolf touts itself as designer, manufacturer and supplier of an innovative patented Solar Hybrid Diffused Augmented Wind Turbine (DWAT) that integrates solar and wind kinetic power into renewable electric energy in a single turbine.

In related action, the Planning Board recommended approval with modifications of a a special use permit and area variance request by Rebecca Hackett of 6359 Telephone Road, Pavilion, for a 153-foot high, 10-kilowatt wind energy system.

The modification stipulation stems from the fact that the proposed setback from the public right-of-way is 294 feet and the proposed setbacks from property lines are 247 and 252 feet -- all three much less than the required distance of 1,000 feet.

Planners are recommending that the applicant obtain a waiver from adjacent landowners before proceeding with the project.

Did you see it -- today at 3:00 PM?  The future rolled right through Batavia, right down Main Street.

You may have seen it and not recognized it for what it is.  Perhaps you thought it was an ordinary shed on a trailer being pulled by a red pick up truck.  In fact, it's part of a display from Homearama 2008 in Perinton that came through Batavia on its way home .

Look carefully and you'll see Dick Gammell reflected in the panes of glass in the door.  Dick is the owner of Canadice Construction Corp. in Springwater, and he's come up with a wind/solar generator that has limitless applications.  He developed the original unit to attach to a standard construction trailer to provide sufficient power to run hand tools and small pieces of equipment on site.  This somewhat portable, combination wind and solar generator replaces the gasoline and diesel varieties (up to 7,000 watts), resulting in the reduction of the use of at least 5 gallons of gas for every 8 hour work day -- per site.   One set of solar panels on half the roof (see photo) and one small wind turbine (stored in the shed for today's trip) does the trick.

In western New York, as in many geographic locations in the Northeast, we have an abundance of wind in the colder months and enough sunshine in the warmer months to power this kind of generator.  This unique "shed" provides all the portable power Dick needs to make his small construction company more cost effective, more independent, and more environmentally friendly.

But Dick didn't stop there!  He's applied his green thinking to golf greens.  This week-end, you can see his Green Cart at Dande Farms Country Club in Akron (see the ad in this week's Genesee Valley Pennysaver).  To test the most far-reaching application of his technology, he recently purchased a plug-in, electric vehicle and hopes to generate 10-14 kilowatts per day to power the car for 40-50 miles at once -- with no emissions!

Dick Gammell is an unassuming, straightforward businessman who saw a need and decided to do something about it.  He works every day at making his idea better.  The successful development of a highly  efficient wind/solar generator for use in generating up to 10-20 kilowatt hours per day of power for a family business may seem like a drop in the bucket, but imagine if we could engage MANY small businessmen in energy conservation and the use of alternative power sources!  It may be the only way to protect this nation's energy security.  I applaud Dick's efforts. 

You can read more at: http://www.canadiceconstruction.com/alternativeenergy.nxg