National Renwable Energy Lab

In Golden Colorado we were given the honor to tour the National Renewable Energy Lab with NOA's very own Sandy MacDonald, creator of Science on a Sphere. Jim Bosch (NREL) was our energetic tour guide, and started us in the visitor's center with the brand new Science on a Sphere exhibit that Sandy himself presented to us. He had the idea to project various aspects of the latest climate models on a sphere one day driving home from work. From The satelite images of lights at night, to wind and solar forcasts, to global photosynthesis, to carbon sources and sinks, to the world oil flow and more, the spherical rendition put all of these findings into a whole new and more understandable perspective.

From there we traveled up to the solar mesa overlooking the entire facility and city. This is where the solar radiation research is taking place from Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) with solar troughs, to a high Flux Solar Furnace the primary goal of the research up here is to displace conventional fuels in an industrial sense, using more renewable energy sources such as the sun. We ventured to the solar deck where a plethora of space age looking instruments worked to measure the solar forecast. Without some sort of a solar forecast, utilities are not interested in using solar for economic reasons. They are interested in watts/m2, and that is precisely what NREL is measuring. Other research taking place at NREL includes photo voltaic research on the atomic level, growing polycrystalline for solar energy use, wind technology, pressed biomass as building material, and more. All of the areas pursued keep the three E's in mind . . . Environment, Economy and Energy Security.

Rapid City Farmer's Market

Rapid City's Saturday morning Farmer's Market is a festive place which attracts a variety of community members. Local growers and local shoppers alike welcomed our bus as we joined the booths at the Market. Local area growers were excited about DRA's enthusiasm and commitment to local foods as we handed them South Dakota Local Foods Directories. We were extremely excited to hear stories from old timers like the Cottonwood Farm folks, who at 80 have been growing and selling produce for over 50 years and will continue until they no longer can, or younger folks who are new to the area and are looking into hoop houses to begin growing in the area and selling at the Market. Their stories and continued enthusiasm demonstrate that there is support and much potential for local foods in the Rapid City area. 

In addition to interest in local foods, we met folks with interests and personal experience in green building practices, and renewable energy and efficiency as whole. Most exciting of all  was seeing our organizing and outreach abilities put into practice as we met some people working on biodiesel who were able to connect with one another as a result of the bus.

Sturgis, South Dakota

Sturgis is a conservative town of about 7,000 people nestled up in the Black Hills of South Dakota. We arrived about 10 days before the 68^th annual motorcycle rally that will bring in about 500,000 enthusiasts from around the country. We set up the green bus amidst a sea of pre-preparations going on in the downtown area.

It didn’t take long before interested folks stopped by to see what the green bus was all about. One guy was really excited to share the story of his first two batches of home-brewed biodiesel. We troubled-shot some of his issues about breaking emulsions and linked him up with some good biofuel resources from the bus.

When planning our South Dakota events, we expected to buy some biodiesel in Sturgis.  Unfortunately, the local Cenex was not carrying the fuel this year. Less Star, local sales manager from Cenex, stopped by to visit us at the bus. He loves the “soy diesel” and his customers do too. Used on the farm and in the trucks, the Cenex B2 and B5 Ruby Fieldmaster adds power and lubricity to engine performance. Unfortunately, the increased price of soy and transportation costs has the local stores out of the biodiesel market this year.  Less believes either a local source or rail transportation could keep prices down and promote a local source for biodiesel in western South Dakota.  

 

Wind Turbine Interview with Gary Cammack

Interview with Gary Cammack

Interviewer: Chelsea Hummon

Background:

The bus crew is at Cammack Ranch Supply in Union Center SD because they carry small scale wind turbines from Skystream Energy. They have had two turbines installed to supplement their energy supply for about 18 months now.

Q: How many KW are the two turbines outside capable of producing?

A: They are capable of producing 2,500 KW/month a piece, but are currently at 400-600KW/month. The lower output is due to regulatory issues.

Q: Why are the turbines governed?

A: There were originally safety concerns with the generators producing over 600KW/month. Since then the UL has done research proving otherwise. In addition to safety, it was easier for Skystream to get them on the market at the lower output and change them from there. So, currently they are waiting for the green light from regulator organization to change the software for a higher output.

Q: How much of the power to Cammack Ranch Supply is from the wind turbines?

A: Currently those turbines are powering about 1/3 of the total power used for the buildings, with between 600 and 1200 KW/ month combined.

Q: Have there been any noise complaints concerning the spinning of the turbine blades?

A: No, there have been no comments from customers.

Q: How high does the wind speed get before the turbines lock up?

A: They lock up around 50-60 mph, but they have made it through a couple of 70-80 mph wind storms. The survival speed is 140 mph.

Q: Are the skystream energy windturbines popular here?

A: I’ve sold two or three of them this year.

Q: Do you recommend them to everyone?

A: I recommend that folks wait for the software changes that are in the works so that the energy output is greater. But, if a household wants to use one of these as is, it would supply just about enough energy to power an average home.

Q: What one thing would you like to see happen in SD and/or nationally to encourage locally owned wind?

A: I would like to see a national power grid so that all of this energy can get on the grid, but even without it people can use it at their own homes.

The Winds of Change

On our way to Cammack Ranch Supply in Union Center we passed through Highmore and headed due south. It became apparent to us that the times are changing with regards to our energy supply as we approached yet another wind project about 10 miles out of Highmore, SD. It was beautiful to see the wheat field waving at the base of the first turbine we approached, leading our gazes towards a vegetable garden and then out to pasture for the cattle. It is great to see farming and ranching taking place around the projects.

At the small interpretive set up across the street from the sub station collecting the windy power, there was a statement about the Basin Electric Co. customers requesting renewable energy. This is a good indication that the phone calls coming from energy consumers to their power providers asking for renewables is making a difference, and shouldn’t cease.

Though it isn’t a locally owned project, it is still benefiting the surrounding community by paying landowners a set amount per turbine per year. As we move forward in reaching energy independence I hope and expect to see the legislation require a certain percentage of new projects to be locally owned. Locally owned projects bring five times the return back into the community than out of state owned projects such as Florida Power and Light. A good community/locally owned wind resource is www.windustry.org

Ice Cream Social and BBQ in Faulkton, SD

We are proud to say that our big green bus livened up Faulkton's sleepy city Park on Monday afternoon. The Bus itself, our demos, and of course the delicious SDSU ice cream attracted many passersby, including many local kids en-route to the public swimming pool nearby. DRA's Amanda and Faulkton native, Braden dished out ice cream as well as some info on local issues that DRA is working on. Many DRA members showed their support and enthusiasm for the bus tour and joined us for the event. Their interest for renewable energy and sustainable biofuels, biodiesel in particular encouraged the crew and generated interest and further discussion among passersby. 

The Ice Cream social quickly turned into a festive BBQ where local grass-fed beef from Cliff Millsapps' farm was served. Many local residents with a wide-range of interests joined us for the event, ranging from the Girl Scouts leader who wants to get the girls involved in local environmental issues, to the Agriculture Co-op leader who is interested in community scale agriculture as well as in biodiesel. 

We were also joined by Nick Nemec, South Dakota State Senate hopeful. Nick is deeply committed to promoting renewable energy alternatives in South Dakota and was very interested in the bus tour. 

We really enjoyed spending a lazy summer day with folks from Faulkton and the surrounding areas, who were so receptive and welcoming.

Lake Preston, SD - Kingsbury Klassic Kruiser Car Show

So, the big green bus rolled into yet another town.  This time the bus pulled in amongst many hotrod and classic cars.  The community closed off the main street to the 700 person town to host owners of cars from a '54  Bel Air to a '07 Corvette and everything in between and even older. Cars lined the street three wide for three blocks.

At the far south end of the street, we parked the bus.  A little toward the end of the line, people still came down to the biodiesel bus to find out what we were all about.  We talked with people from the community and others from different parts.  Many of those we spoke with showed interest in biodiesel and the local member group, Dakota Rural Action .

We stayed at the event for 4 hours and talked with about 40 different people.  As the show ended, promptly at 3:00pm, we began to hear cars start and the engines rev.  One-by-one the participants rolled out of town, some leaving a trail of rubber on the ground and a cloud of black smoke in the air.  After the last car left, the big green bus pulled out of town toward Huron, where the crew stayed that night.