Over the past five years the Wray School District has experienced countless highs and lows in the process of completing the wind turbine project.  The wind turbine is going through its final adjustments to go online.

The small district spends approximately $80,000 a year on electricity. Our Wray High School Vo-Ag instructor, Jay Clapper, proposed to the district that it consider the construction of a wind turbine. This project would offset the district’s annual energy costs and provide a renewable energy educational component to the school’s curriculum.  The Board of Education agreed to support this idea, and a wind committee, including Mr. Clapper and a number of interested Wray citizens, was formed.

In December, the Wray School District Board of Education voted to approve the purchase of a 900 KW wind turbine. This project will be built on land recently purchased by the City of Wray and located south of Wray on Highway 385 near County Road JJ. The City of Wray and the Board of Education have partnered together through a power purchase agreement to see this project become a reality. It’s a Grid-Tie system, so the renewable energy captured from this wind turbine project will flow into the city grid for consumer use.

When the group started the Wray School Wind Project nobody knew how complicated the process was going to be. They stuck it out, the City of Wray will have the green power generated by the turbine.  The “flip the switch” ceremony was, two months ago. Since then they’ve been troubleshooting the equipment, making final adjustments, passing mandated inspections and becoming familiar with the network of equipment and personnel that will provide technical support to this new turbine.

The blades turn evenly in the wind, but only by the perseverance of school personnel and community support does this thing work. By providing an environmentally safe source of power to this community, the visionary leaders added financial support to the education of their students. They have eased a tax burden, enhanced education, and improved their environment, that’s leadership.

Now, here to the right is where it ties to the grid.  Not real dramatic is it?  I love it when a good plan comes together.  Congratulations to the Wray School District and all the great leaders who performed this project.  Nice work folks.

If you are interested in starting a wind project for your residence or acreage, contact us. To Buy a Wind Turbine or Become a Dealer, Please fill out our Contact Form. The system will automatically send you some additional info.

Tags: colorado, colorado school, community wind project, school district wind turbine, wind energy, wind turbine, wray colorado school

This entry was posted on Friday, July 11th, 2008 at 6:19 PM and is filed under wind energy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.