Welcome to the Community Wind Toolbox. The Community Wind Handbook offers high-quality practical information for those interested in developing commercial-scale wind projects.  The core content of this Toolbox comes from The Community Wind Handbook, developed by Windustry on behalf of the Rural Minnesota Energy Board and published December 15, 2006 by a partnership of the Agriculture Utilization Research Institute, the Southwest Initiative Foundation, The Minnesota Project, Clean Energy Resource Teams, and the Minnesota Corn Research and Promotion Council.   Continue reading

The core content of the Community Wind Toolbox comes from The Community Wind Handbook, developed by Windustry on behalf of the Rural Minnesota Energy Board and published December 15, 2006 by a partnership of the Agriculture Utilization Research Institute, the Southwest Initiative Foundation, The Minnesota Project, Clean Energy Resource Teams, and the Minnesota Corn Research and Promotion Council. The Community Wind Handbook offers high-quality practical information for farmers and rural landowners looking to develop commercial-scale wind projects. The content of The Community Wind Handbook has been integrated with related content and interactive tools to create the Community Wind Toolbox, a robust on-line resource for community wind development that will be kept up-to-date with the rapidly changing wind energy landscape. Continue reading

Read the full toolbox in a book reader here. Continue reading

Wind energy development is expanding rapidly, creating many opportunities for communities to participate in wind development. Windy acreage, once cursed for losing top soil, is now seen as a potential goldmine.  Wind energy offers many financial, environmental, and social benefits to the communities and individuals who choose to get involved with its development. Continue reading

This section introduces the key players and their roles in community wind development. It gives an overview of the steps involved in the development process, and provides a checklist to help you organize your community wind development project. Here are the main topics covered: Key Players in the Wind Industry Community Wind Development Steps Wind Project Development Checklist Additional Resources for Developing Community Wind Energy Continue reading

This section focuses on project management and planning, two elements that are essential to a successful 2-50 MW community wind project. Topics covered in this section include putting together a reliable project team and understanding risks and ways to mitigate them. The section also provides resources for creating a realistic project plan and timeline, as well as tips from experienced community wind developers. Continue reading

Wind resource assessment is the most important step in planning a community wind project because it is the basis for determining initial feasibility and cash flow projections, and is ultimately vital for acquiring financing. Your project will progress through several stages of assessment: Initial Assessment Detailed site characterization Long-term validation of data Detailed cash flow projection and acquiring financing Continue reading

As with any large energy facility, community wind projects raise a wide variety of siting issues. Placing turbines to take advantage of the best wind resources must be balanced with minimizing their impact on existing land uses, neighbors, and the environment. The first part of this section of the Community Wind Energy Toolbox discusses the various issues (apart from wind resource) that should be taken into consideration in siting a community wind project, including: Land use Aesthetics Property values Sound Public safety Liability prevention Environmental impacts Construction impacts Continue reading

If you have a good wind resource and land that is well-suited for wind turbines, you still must consider how your community views and regulates wind power. Communities around the country are working to find the best ways to permit and tax wind generation facilities. Their decisions are vital to windy areas because they determine the impacts and benefits of wind energy projects for the broader community. Some states, like Minnesota, have developed statewide policies but still involve local agencies in the process, while most states leave it to the counties or other local permitting agencies to create regulations and issue permits.   Good project planning means knowing early on what the local requirements are and designing the project to be consistent with those requirements. Investigating zoning laws early in the development of your wind project can help avoid unnecessary delays. This section is intended to give you a quick overview of permitting and zoning regulations in several Midwest states. Topics covered in this section include: Permitting Authorities Permitting – State by State Conclusion Continue reading

In the United States, leasing land to wind energy developers continues to be the most common way rural landowners are participating in wind energy. As the wind industry grows, wind developers are increasing the amount of land they are leasing to keep their future market share from slipping away. Because of this, landowners in windy areas need solid advice about wind energy and what signing a wind energy lease or easement means to both them and future generations who will inherit the land. Continue reading