SLIPPERY ROCK, PA. He's testing the wind to power SRU building

It will cost $10,000 to $15,000 to construct the wind turbines.
By LAURE CIOFFI
VINDICATOR NEW CASTLE BUREAU
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. -- Heath Gamache has always been fascinated with the sources of electric power.
It likely started with an early experience as a child when his father worked at a nuclear power plant in Vermont.
"I was a kid in the 1970s, and there were protests all of the time in front of nuclear power plants. There was a real awareness that power is something we need to use, and also there are some real problems," Gamache said.
Now a master's degree student in Slippery Rock University's sustainable systems program, Gamache, 32, is exploring the idea of wind power.
He has set up a meteorological tower on campus to determine if wind turbines can be used to provide power.
What the data say
After taking in six months of data, Gamache said the prospect of wind power is good, but it won't solve all power needs. The goal is to provide wind energy for SRU's Harmony House, located at the university's Robert A. McCloskey Center for Sustainable Systems Education and Research.
Gamache said he expects wind power to generate about 25 percent of the needs of the building, which has a high consumption rate of energy in classrooms, offices and living space.
He noted that renewable energy systems usually use multiple sources, such as solar panels in addition to wind power, and a backup generator.
Humans and the environment
Gamache, who serves as assistant director of environmental education at Camp Lutherlyn in Prospect, Pa., said he's interested in wind energy because it fits into his personal belief system of understanding how humans are supposed to fit into the environment.
"It is one of stewardship of what God has created. I felt alternative energy and renewable energy was really a sensible way to go because it affects all of us and the environment," he said.
While working on his study at SRU, Gamache is also studying wind conditions at his Prospect home to determine if wind turbines could power his own needs. So far, the wind isn't as strong at his home.
He expects to continue monitoring wind conditions through July. Whether a wind turbine will be constructed will be determined by funding and if the college can get grants for it. Gamache said it will cost from $10,000 to $15,000.
Fastest growing source
Wind energy, a clean source of electricity, is the world's fastest-growing energy source, according to the American Wind Energy Association in Washington, D.C. Spokeswoman Kathy Belyeu said its production levels have increased 24 percent in five years.
The windmills in Somerset County produce 2.4 million kilowatt hours of electricity a year. An average home consumes 10,000 kilowatts a year, according to Energy Information Agency 1997 statistics.
Gamache said once he completes his studies at SRU, he would like to work on similar projects in developing countries.
cioffi@vindy.com