Rensselaer Adventures

This blog reports events and interesting tidbits from Rensselaer, Indiana and the surrounding area.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Another windmill update

On Easter Sunday we drove to Indianapolis, and I was amazed at how much construction had taken place in the wind farm along I-65 in White County. Three weeks ago we drove through it and there were many towers on the east side of the interstate under construction, and just a few getting started on the west side. On Easter Sunday all the towers on the east side seemed completed, but there were many new towers on the west side under construction. (Click on these pictures for larger versions.)
The blades of the newer towers are different from the blades of the ones erected just a few months ago.
All of the windmills in these pictures are west of I-65. In this row, some are competed and some are still waiting to be topped off.
This set of three is interesting, showing one completed, one getting close to having the generator and blades installed, and one still waiting for its final bit of tower. One the way home in the evening, I saw these again silhouetted in the setting sun, and it would have made a wonderful photograph. Unfortunately, I was driving and could not take any pictures.
Here is a closer view of a tower under construction. All the parts are there and they just need to be assembled. These pictures were all taken from a moving car (I was the passenger for these) and they are a bit blurry as a result.
Here is another tower that probably will be finished in a week. The crane is ready to start putting the pieces together.
There is a rest stop on I-65 just north of this wind farm. I have not stopped in it lately, but if it does not have information about the four wind farms that are in the vicinity, the state should start preparing some exhibits. They could also present some information on natural gas. I believe there is a geologic formation in this area that allows for the storing of natural gas, and just to the south of the rest area is a facility that has something to do with that.

Here is some video from the highway showing the three southernmost windmills of the Meadow Lake Wind Farm in White County.


Update: Here is the video I wish I could have shot.

2 comments:

Ed said...

If I remember right there is a government mandate to have a certain percentage of energy coming from wind power by 2030. Generation capacity is increasing on a rate of ~%60 per year which means these things are popping up quickly - should be interesting to see the flatlands of America in a decade or two.

Anonymous said...

I love the wind farms with the towers standing tall and the blades reaching out to the sky. I love them still and I love the blades circling the towers.
My husband, who grew up in the area, thinks they are an outrage to the flat landscape. ja