Meadow Lake Wind Farm

Meadow Lake Wind Farm
View westward of Indiana Route 43 in White County
Location of Meadow Lake Wind Farm in Indiana
Country	United States
Location	Brookston, Indiana
Coordinates	40°36′4″N 86°51′57″W / 40.60111°N 86.86583°W / 40.60111; -86.86583Coordinates: 40°36′4″N 86°51′57″W / 40.60111°N 86.86583°W / 40.60111; -86.86583
Status	Phase I operating; phase II under construction
Commission date	Phase I: October 2009
Owner(s)	Horizon Wind Energy
Power station information
Primary fuel	Wind
Generation units	121 Vestas V82 wind turbines, @1.65 MW
Power generation information
Installed capacity	Phase I: 199.65 MW
Maximum capacity	Phase I: 199.65 MW

Meadow Lake Wind Farm is a wind farm near Brookston^[1] and Chalmers, Indiana, spreading over portions of White, Jasper, and Benton Counties in Indiana,^[2] owned and operated by Horizon Wind Energy. The wind farm is undergoing construction in phases, and could eventually reach a combined nameplate capacity of 1000 MW with over 600 wind turbines.^[3]

Phase I

Phase I consists of 121 Vestas V82^[2] 1.65 MW wind turbines, for a total nameplate capacity of 199.65 MW.^[4] Groundbreaking ceremonies occurred on April 14, 2009.^[5] Phase I became operational in October, 2009.^[3] At that time, Horizon had not completed a power purchase agreement with a utility company.^[3] Instead, Horizon began selling the wind farm's output to the regional wholesale electricity market.^[2]

Horizon built a substation next to an existing AEP substation which was already within the wind farm site area. This allowed the wind farm to connect to the power grid without the need to build lengthy new transmission line at a cost of $1 million per mile.^[1]

Phase II

Phase II began operation in June 2010, with 66 Acciona wind turbines having a combined nameplate capacity of 99 MW.^[4]

Phase III

Phase III began commercial operation in October 2010, with 69 GE sle 1.5 MW wind turbines having an installed capacity of 103.5 MW.

Phase IV

Phase IV has an installed capacity of 98.7 MW generated by 47 Suzlon S88 2.1 MW turbines. They can generate enough electricity to power approximately 27,000 average Indiana homes. This phase began commercial operation in October 2010.

Phases V and VI

Future phases will have capacities between about 100 MW and 200 MW each.^[3][6][7]

History

Environmental impact

At the planned nameplate capacity of 1000 MW, Meadow Lake would be one of the largest wind farms in the world, generating enough electricity to power about 250,000 homes,^[5] annually saving 1,684 million gallons of water and eliminating 3.1 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions.^[8] Phases I and II should eliminate just under one million tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.^[3]

Phase I spreads over 26,000 acres (110 km²) on a ten by six mile area. Since large wind turbines must be spaced at least 5 to 10 rotor diameters apart to avoid wind shadowing, most of the land between turbines remains productive farmland. Only about 250 acres (1.0 km²) of farmland have been taken out of production by the 121 turbines.^[1]

In early 2010, a Horizon representative and local renewable energy advocates scouted the Meadow Lake project area for a location to build a visitor center. One possibility was an unused building near the intersection of I-65 and US-231 (40°40′04″N 87°02′27″W / 40.667692°N 87.04073°W / 40.667692; -87.04073), near where a wind turbine will be installed within the next year.^[1]

See also

• Wind power in Indiana
• Benton County Wind Farm - Benton County, Indiana
• Fowler Ridge Wind Farm - Benton County, Indiana
• Meadow Lake Wind Farm - White, Jasper, and Benton Counties

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Richards, Rick A. (2010-03-03). "Wind farms are changing Indiana’s rural landscape". Farm World. http://www.farmworldonline.com/News/NewsArticle.asp?newsid=9573. Retrieved 2010-03-16. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "Meadow Lake Wind Farm, Indiana". Horizon Wind Energy. http://www.horizonwind.com/projects/whatwevedone/meadow-lake.aspx. Retrieved 2010-03-15. 
3. ^ ^{a b c d e} Krizen, Julie (2009-10-23). "New wind farm operating in White County; Meadow Lake Wind Farm phase I complete". WLFI-TV. http://www.wlfi.com/dpp/news/local/local_wlfi_whitecounty_new_windfarm_operating_in_white_county_20091023. Retrieved 2010-03-15. 
4. ^ ^{a b} "U.S. Wind Energy Projects - Indiana". American Wind Energy Association. 2009-12-31. http://www.awea.org/projects/Projects.aspx?s=Indiana. Retrieved 2010-03-12. ^{[dead link]}
5. ^ ^{a b} Showalter, Max (2009-04-15). "Groundbreaking held for ambitious White County wind farm". Lafeyette Journal & Courier. http://www.indystar.com/article/20090415/BUSINESS/904150320/1003/BUSINESS. Retrieved 2010-03-15. 
6. ^ "Meadow Lake Wind Farm". White County Economic Development. http://www.whitecountyin.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=94&Itemid=260. Retrieved 2010-03-16. 
7. ^ "Meadow Lake Update" (PDF). Horizon Wind Energy. 2009-07-15. http://www.whitecountyin.org/images/stories/file/Meadow%20Lake%20Wind%20Farm.pdf. Retrieved 2010-03-16. ^{[dead link]}
8. ^ Lantz, Eric; Tegen, Suzanne (May 2008). "Economic Benefits, Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Emissions Reductions, and Water Conservation Benefits from 1,000 Megawatts (MW) of New Wind Power in Indiana" (PDF, 503kB). EERE, NREL. doi:DOE/GO-102008-2562. http://www.windpoweringamerica.gov/pdfs/economic_development/2008/in_wind_benefits_factsheet.pdf. Retrieved 2010-03-17. 

External links

• Construction of Wind Turbine White Co Indiana on YouTube