SPECIALIST LIGHTING
FEATURE SPONSOR
A BRIGHT IDEA – TURN OFF THE LIGHTS
RADAR PROVIDES A SOLUTION TO CONTROL OBSTRUCTION LIGHTING BY EDWARD LUNDQUIST LOWELL MOUNTAIN
While radar control of wind turbine aircraft warning lights are not new in Europe, they have yet to catch on in America. Edward Lundquist reports that operators want to offer the ‘on-off’ switch; communities want ‘dark skies’; and in some cases regulation requires windfarms to have obstruction lighting control. But, he tells us, solutions must meet stringent requirements to be certified.
OBSTRUCTION LIGHTING CONTROL
Kingdom Community Wind may be the first operating windfarm to adopt obstruction lighting control to switch blinking lights off at night. Dotty Schnure of Green Mountain Power (GMP), a utility serving 265,000 customers in Vermont, says GMP wanted to install the Obstacle Collision Avoidance System (OCAS) radar at the beginning, when the 21 turbines began generating power in four years ago. In fact, the company specified the capability when it applied for its permit in 2010, and hoped to be able to install it when construction started, or have it available to install when the facility became operational in 2012. “We promised the community we would build Kingdom Community Wind to the highest standards, and that included installing equipment that would keep warning lights off unless oncoming aircraft was detected,” said Schnure. “We thought of it as part of our all- encompassing effort to be a good neighbour in the community which so strongly supported this project before and after it was built.”
The turbines, located on Lowell Mountain in Lowell, Vermont, have eight aircraft warning lights that meet the requirements of the Federal Aviation Administration. The capability to turn those lights on and off, depending on the presence of aircraft in the vicinity, requires certification by the FAA. The utility is dedicated to a clean,
cost-effective and reliable energy future, and to listening to residents. “GMP will help Vermont achieve its goal of achieving 90 percent of the state’s energy from renewable sources by 2050.” stated Schnure.
RENEWABLE ENERGY SITING BILL
Furthermore, in June, Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin signed the ‘Renewable Energy Siting Bill’, designed to improve regional and town energy planning and to enhance community input into the siting of energy projects. The law requires that “Any new wind generation facility of four or more turbines minimize visual impact at nighttime by installing radar-controlled lights.” The lighting requirements are specified
in “Safe, Efficient Use, and Preservation of the Navigable Airspace,” and state that structures above 200 feet (61 metres) above ground level, “should be marked and/or lighted with FAA-approved paint markings or lighting fixtures to ensure that they are visible to pilots at night.” The FAA has recognised that because the number of telecommunication towers and wind turbines are growing, the number of required lighting fixtures has greatly increased. As a result, the FAA says it has created light concerns to some residents living near these facilities.
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www.windenergynetwork.co.uk
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