RENEW Wisconsin’s newsletter features these articles:
+ Doyle Signs Wind Siting Reform Bill into Law
+ Solar Outlook Set to Dim in 2010
+ PSC Approves Coal to Wood Conversion
+ Producer Profile: Rick Adamski
+ Educating Schools on Solar Air Heating
+ RENEW Slams Anti-Wind Article
+ Calendar
Rick Adamski (left) began researching wind turbine options at the Midwest Renewable Energy Fair in 2005, where he talked with turbine installer Dave Blecker of Seventh Generation, the company that installed Adamski’s turbine.
From an article and interview with Rick Adamski in RENEW Wisconsin’s newsletter:
Though he modestly calls him self a typical dairy farmer, Rick Adamski’s Full Circle Farm in Shawano County belies that description. Adamski runs an all-organic operation with grass-fed cattle, free-ranging chickens, a solar hot water system on the farmhouse, and a 35- kW wind turbine standing tall in the pasture.
Adamski farms the 240 acres across the road from the house where he was born and where his 86-year-old parents still live. Wife Valerie, son Andrew, 18, and daughter Jenna, 13, help out with the work.
He inherited his land use ethic from his parents, who were the model of “conservative use of resources – not a scrap was wasted.” This approach was a matter of survival for them growing up during the Great Depression.
As a student at University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point, Adamski became acutely aware of modern agricultures complete dependence on fossil fuels. Though he would eventually earn a degree in soil science and resource management, Adamski began thinking about a more sustainable approach to farming, with an emphasis on natural grazing and renewable resources.
In 1984 Adamski decided to strike out on his own as a farmer. Though he wanted to go organic from the get-go, the process took time. Now he sells everything he produces to Organic Valley Cooperative.
Rick and Valerie hosted a pasture walk this summer, which drew several hundred people. Along the way the crowd stopped at the foot of Adamski’s 110-ft.-tall wind turbine, the newest sustainability feature at Full Circle Farm, where they heard Rick highlight two key factors that made this installation possible: Focus on Energy incentives for small wind systems and We Energies expanded net energy billing program for wind generators under 100 kW.
Q. Is your dairy farm typical of those in your community?
It is typical because it is what used to be representative of this community. This area has a strong history of dairy farms owned and operated by families. Our farm is certified organic since 2003. There are three organic dairy farms in the township.
Q. How does owning a 35 kW wind generation system add value to your farm?
I think it diversifies the source of income for us. At current conditions the cost effectiveness is marginal. However, as climate change, diminishing fossil fuels, competition for these limited fossil fuels, and an ever-growing world population put more upward pressure on these traditional nonrenewable resources, the energy generated by our wind turbine will only increase in value.
From the Midwest Renewable Energy Association:
SOLAR THERMAL ’09 is a national conference and expo for the solar thermal professional. The Midwest Renewable Energy Association invites you to the only professional level conference devoted to solar heating and cooling.
Installers, manufacturers, site assessors, dealers, distributors, state agency representatives, and policy makers will not want to miss this one-of-a-kind conference.
TOPICS INCLUDE:
•Solar hot water, solar hot air, and solar space heating sessions
•Manufacturer and dealer updates
•Best practices on residential and commercial applications
•New control and balance of system options
•Structural considerations
•State policy and incentive updates
Register here.
A news release from the Dane County Clean Air Coalition:
If you’re burning wood this winter, you can have a cheaper, safer and healthier fire by following these tips:
• Burn only dry, seasoned wood. It’s better for the air and your wallet. Look for wood that is darker, has cracks in the end grain, and sounds hollow when hit against another piece of wood. Dry seasoned wood is more efficient at heating your home and can add up to significant savings over the winter.
• Never burn painted or treated wood or trash.
• Maintain your wood stove or fireplace and have a certified technician inspect it yearly. A certified technician can clean dangerous soot from your chimney and keep your wood stove or fireplace working properly, which reduces your risk of a home fire.
• Change to an EPA-certified wood stove or fireplace insert. These models are more efficient than older models, keeping your air cleaner, your home safer and your fuel bill lower, while keeping you warm in the winter. An estimated 12 million Americans heat their homes with wood stoves each winter, and nearly three-quarters of these stoves are not EPA certified. An EPA-certified wood stove emits nearly 70 percent less smoke than older uncertified models. Go to the EPA’s Burn Wise website for more information: http://www.epa.gov/burnwise
• If you have another source of heat, do not use your fireplace or wood stove on days that are forecast to be Clean Air Action Days for fine particle pollution.
A news release issued by Wisconsin Farmers Union:
Chippewa Falls, Wis. – The Wisconsin Farmers Union and other Homegrown Renewable Energy Campaign partners will host a bus tour on Nov. 13 to highlight the benefits of four homegrown renewable energy policies promoted by the campaign and the opportunities for clean energy jobs in Wisconsin.
The four signature partners of the activities are Wisconsin Farmers Union, the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute, Clean Wisconsin and RENEW Wisconsin. The Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection and the Office of Energy Independence are co-sponsors of the event.
The bus tour will begin at 9 a.m. at the Montfort Wind Farm, 254 Highway 18, Montfort, Wis. The wind farm is an example of one way to reduce carbon emissions and emphasizes the campaign’s advocacy for a Low-Carbon Fuel Standard. A LCFS calls for a reduction in carbon emissions from transportation fuels, based on the carbon content of all fuels, and the transformation of the market.
The Fuels for Schools and Communities Program and the Biomass Crop Reserve Program will be addressed at the second stop on the tour – at the Meister Cheese Plant, 1160 Industrial Drive, Muscoda, Wis. The cheese plant uses a wood-chip heating system. Research at the University of Wisconsin will also be highlighted demonstrate the prospects for Wisconsin farmers to grow biomass crops.
Providing funding for schools and communities to install renewable energy projects that use biomass crops will create demand for renewable energy. The Biomass Crop Reserve Program provides incentives for farmers to meet that demand by growing biomass crops.
The third stop will be at the Cardinal Glass factory in Mazomanie, Wis. Cardinal Glass is one of the leading suppliers of glass for solar panels. The stop is an example of how homegrown renewable energy can provide jobs for Wisconsin.
Renewable energy buyback rates, the fourth component of the Homegrown Renewable Energy Campaign, will set utility payments for small renewable energy producers who want to feed energy into the electric grid. The tour will stop at a residential home in Ridgeway, Wis. using solar panels to feed electricity into the grid.
The bus will return to the Montfort Wind Farm at 5 p.m.
To register for the Homegrown Renewable Energy Campaign Bus Tour, contact Mike Stranz, WFU Government Relations Specialist, by Nov. 9 at 608-256-6661 or email mstranz@wisconsinfarmersunion.com. A $10 registration fee, payable by cash or check the day of the event, covers the cost of the tour, lunch and snacks.
CLICK HERE for more information on the Homegrown Renewable Energy Bus Tour.