Mount Storm Wind Farm

Mount Storm Wind Farm
The wind farm as seen from the highway
Location of Mount Storm Wind Farm
Country	United States
Location	Grant County, West Virginia
Coordinates	39°13′28″N 79°12′15″W / 39.22444°N 79.20417°W / 39.22444; -79.20417Coordinates: 39°13′28″N 79°12′15″W / 39.22444°N 79.20417°W / 39.22444; -79.20417
Status	Operational
Construction began	2006
Turbine information
Turbines	132
Wind farm information
Type	Onshore
Power generation information
Installed capacity	264 MW

The Mount Storm Wind Farm is located 120 miles west of Washington, D.C. in Grant County, West Virginia. The wind farm includes 132 wind turbines each with a two megawatt (MW) capacity along 12 miles of the Allegheny Front. Construction of the wind farm began in 2006 and the project is now fully operational, generating up to 264 MW of electricity for the mid-Atlantic power grid.^[1]

History

Plans for the farm were first announced in 2001, when U.S. Wind Force filed for a permit with the West Virginia Public Service Commission to build a 166 turbine wind farm, which would have been the largest wind farm east of the Mississippi River. The project's backers hoped that the first turbines would be operational by late 2002 with the rest of the facility coming online in 2003, but opponents quickly raised objections, arguing that the project would threaten birds and diminish home values in the surrounding area.^[2]

In May 2002, the Public Service Commission approved U.S. Wind Force's permit application without any significant opposition. The company also reached an agreement with the AFL-CIO to use union labor in the construction of the facility. At the hearings for the permit, speakers in favor of the project included Walt Helmick, a member of the West Virginia Senate, Jeff Barger, the County Commissioner of Grant County, and Steve White a union leader. A study by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service concluded that the project posed little danger to local birds, clearing the way for construction.^[3]

References

1. ^ Dominion & Shell Complete 264-MW Mount Storm Wind Project
2. ^ Nyden, Paul (December 28, 2001). "Grant Wind Farm Will be Largest in East". The Charleston Gazette: p. 1C. 
3. ^ Steelhammer, Rick (MAy 30, 2002). "Grant wind farm developers reach agreement with union". The Charleston Gazette: p. 5A.