Published: September 03, 2008 10:17 pm            

Township amends law to cover home windmills

LILLY — Guidelines now are in place for Washington Township residents who plan to erect wind turbines on their property.

Township supervisors on Wednesday amended an ordinance they passed in 2006 to govern electricity-generating wind turbines for commercial use.

The amendment adapts those rules to cover wind turbines erected for personal use.

It describes setbacks and height requirements and establishes a one-time fee of $500.

Energy developer Gamesa Inc. has built 14 windmills in the township under the ordinance, Supervisor Ray Guzic said.

The vote to approve the amendment was unanimous.

“The amendment was to address the issue for people who want to put personal turbines on their properties,” township Solicitor Thomas Swope III said after he meeting. “We realize that these home-use turbines are out there.”

Township officials see the amended law as a proactive step for the construction and operation of windmills.

No families in the township have personal windmills at this time, Guzic said.

“The way the ordinance was written, they would have to meet the conditions of commercial wind farms, which would not be fair,” Swope said.

The amended law took effect after it was passed Wednesday.

Also, township officials are moving along with a feasibility study for a proposed recreation facility. The township is waiting for approval of a $100,000 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

“In the meantime, we needed to get money for the feasibility study,” Guzic said.

The study will cost $5,000, which is covered by a grant from the office of state Rep. Gary Haluska, D-Patton.

Gamesa also donated $5,000 to the project, Guzic said.

The proposed recreation facility, which could cost up to $3.5 million, will be built in three or four phases on about 15 acres of land, much of which is laced with bony, or coal waste, piles.

“It’s an exciting time for us, turning a bony pile into something useful,” Guzic said.

        

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