Published: July 22, 2008 12:18 am      

Workshop encourages turbine use, proposes limits

EBENSBURG – Even a county judge attended Cambria Township’s workshop Monday on allowing, even encouraging, individual wind turbines to generate electricity for home use.

“We do have an energy problem we have to face,” Judge Timothy Creany told township supervisors.

Saying he and his wife have been talking about possibly moving from Ebensburg Borough to a more rural setting, Creany praised supervisors for taking steps to allow residential windmills.

“But the permit fee shouldn’t be prohibitive. And maybe you shouldn’t have a fee at all in order to encourage use,” he said.

Others in attendance agreed.

“We want to be progressive here in the township,” resident Jim Harteis said.

“With energy costs what they are, we’ll be revisiting these types of devices,” he said.

Next the proposal goes to the township Planning Commission, which has been charged with recommending a path forward.

It will meet at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 12 at the township building, and the session is open to the public.

“You won’t see these things popping up everywhere because they’re expensive,” said commission Chairman Dennis Simmers, who also expressed support for encouraging windmills.

“There are other states that are reimbursing folks,” he said.

Simmers also said that, using a 75-foot tall model – with a setback requirement of 11/2 times its height – a little more than an acre would be required to install a residential wind turbine.

Legislatively, rules for residential windmills are in the form of a proposed amendment to the township’s commercial wind turbine ordinance.

Solicitor Dennis Govachini stressed that the zoning ordinance and other laws still would be applicable and that the turbines would be allowed as “accessory uses.”

Two issues remain to be resolved by the Planning Commission and then supervisors, Govachini said.

“Maybe we should consider an amendment to allow selling any excess power ‘on the grid’, and maybe the proposed fee is too high,” he said.