5000 Nomad 2s around the world

We were startled to realize a few months ago that we were coming up on out 5000th Nomad 2 data logger. Naturally this called for a celebration. It was our good fortune that #5000 was sold to long time Second Wind customer Henry duPont of Lorax Energy. We had a custom Nomad cake and some champagne. Henry and his associate Deb Pasternak were on hand to accept their logger from Second Wind President Walter Sass and share some cake. Henry told us #5000 will be installed on a ranch in Texas in anticipation of a 50MW wind project. One of the things we enjoy about working with Lorax is that they do some cool projects. They do some innovative things with renewable energy and brownfields, as well as community wind projects. Thank you, Lorax and the owners of the other 4,999 Nomads 2s out there. I wonder when we'll hit 10,000?

Stand out for Cape Wind

On March 6th, some members of the Second Wind team made an appearance in Medford Square as part of a demonstration by Clean Power Now. The purpose of the event was to deliver over 8,000 signed postcards to Congressman Ed Markey at his Medford office. Markey is the chairman of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, as well as being part of the Energy and Commerce committee. We had a postcard blitz in the office last fall as part of this project, contributing over 40 to the effort. It was a beautiful sunny morning as we stood around with our signs waving at passers-by. The mood was upbeat as Dunkin Donuts came around with free samples of their latest goodies. We were surprised, but pleased to be joined by Glen Berkowitz of BogWind. After about an hour of standing around, we trouped about a block to the Congressman's office. One of us got preferential treatment as an actual constituent of the Congressman, and got to enter his office, while the rest of us crowded outside. The Congressman's staff was kind enough to provide more Dunkin Donuts. Even though we work in wind energy every day, it's a rush to get out there and stand up for it every now and again.

Parade Magazine Features Wind Energy

Since I live in the cultural bubble that is Eastern Massachusetts, I rely on bulletins from the Real America to understand how America's opinions are formed. Parade Magazine has always been my window into the Real America, right down to its obsession with celebrities. This past weekend Parade had a whole feature on wind energy, with a spotlight on Massachusetts' own Cape Wind project. The author was none other than Second Wind Friend Wendy Williams, coauthor of the Cape Wind book. Congrats, Wendy, on this high-profile placement and on putting the Cape Wind issue squarely in front of the nation.

Triton in the Cranberrry Bog

Glen Berkowitz of Beaufort Wind is an early adopter of Triton and has become a Friend of Second Wind. He's using Triton to assess the potential for utility-scale wind in a Massachusetts cranberry bog. Like other agricultural wind projects, his offers the opportunity for an additional revenue stream for farmers. We think this is very cool and are also benefiting from a Massachusetts test site for Triton.

His project was recently featured in an article in South Coast Today, which covers the greater New Bedford area. There are more photos in this September article.

WoWE ~ Inaugural Meeting, March 3rd

Women of Wind Energy ~ Women + Wind = WoWE!

The women at Second Wind Inc. are thrilled to announce the creation of a Boston Chapter of the Women of Wind Energy! With the number of women growing rapidly at Second Wind Inc, and in the wind industry worldwide, we felt it would be a great opportunity to connect with other successful women in the Boston area. The Women of Wind Energy (WoWE) is a nationwide organization with over 500 members since it’s launch in 2005. At the heart of the organization is a mission to “support and encourage the participation and advancement of professional women in the wind energy industry.” As a woman at Second Wind Inc, I am proud to help kick off the Boston Chapter and look forward to our future success!

The WoWE Boston inaugural meeting will be held at Sagra Ristorante on Monday March 3rd @ 630pm. The enthusiastic response from local women has been exciting and we look forward to a huge turnout. Please join us! We will also be holding a raffle to benefit the WoWE Scholarship Fund.

Sagra Ristorante is located on 400 Highland Avenue in Davis Square, Somerville. Sagra is a short walk from the Davis Square red line T stop.

Please RSVP to juliefarnold@gmail.com by February 25th to let us know if you will attend.

Hope to see you there!

Sincerely,
Julie Arnold
Second Wind, Inc.

Sodar article in February North American Windpower

I must admit to being excited to see my name in print in this month's North American Windpower magazine. Editor Jennifer Delony invited us to write an article on sodar for this month's resource assessment issue, and although it was an educational experience, I was unreasonably thrilled to see the final result in the magazine. It's not online, or I'd link to it, but it is in the print edition, which is a free subscription. The cornerstone of my reputation as a world authority has been set!

Second Wind nixes Boston wind turbine

Back in October, we installed a Nomad data logger atop City Hall in Boston. Boston's Mayor Menino had publicly declared his intention to put a wind turbine in City Hall Plaza, pending research. For those who don't know City Hall Plaza, it's a vast concrete and brick expanse surrounded by city, state and federal office buildings. It's one of those urban renewal projects from the 60s where they tore down a struggling but busy neighborhood, Scollay Square (AKA "slum") and replaced it with a socialist-inspired sterile landscape. A wind turbine could only improve it. Now that Boston has one turbine (the highly visible Fuhrlander on the Southeast Expressway), a second one seems appealing.

Alas, the City Hall Plaza winds are typical squirrely city winds with lots of turbulence as the winds bounce off the buildings. Despite being a place where your coat gets blown open and your skirts end up around your ears, it's not windy enough for wind generation. But the results of the study were announced today in the Globe. There was to be a press conference where Ken Cohn was on hand to explain the study, but it was postponed because of the snowstorm.