He knows it sounds like crazy talk.
A wind turbine in southeast Kansas?
This area, to be sure, has its share of breezy days. But what about those days when flags don't flap and trees limbs don't sway? Is there really enough wind in these parts to make a wind turbine a useful investment?
Jim Gaskell isn't 100 percent sure. But he's trying to find out.
As the project manager for the Public Wholesale Water Supply District No. 11 in Arcadia, Gaskell was asked last winter by the group's board to research and investigate the possibilities of powering the PWWSD's water treatment plant using wind turbines for electrical generation.
"We had a member express interest in wind power," Gaskell said. "They asked me to look into it."
If — and right now, it's a big if — engineering studies prove that it indeed can be pulled off, Gaskell said the water district's plan is to obtain a turbine on a tower shorter than 100 feet that could generate 225 kilowatts per hour, just enough to operate the plant, which is located northwest of Arma. The PWWSD board is working with state and federal agencies on financing for the project.
But first things first. Gaskell said an engineering feasibility study still needs to be conducted to determine whether or not such a project is even a possibility in this part of the state. Gaskell said he's heard many discussions on the lack of wind here, but he's also heard just the opposite.
"They always say southeast Kansas doesn't have enough wind," he said. "However, a study Kansas State University did for us indicates that we do have enough. Most of our wind here averages between 10 and 12 miles per hour. That will do the job for us."
Further studies are necessary, however, and if those results don't yield in their favor, Gaskell said the water district board will abandon the project.
"We haven't committed to this," he said. "We're still looking at the facts and figures. If we get studies that tell us it won't happen, we'll back off of it. Right now, we're still in the unknown."
Should this idea come to fruition, though, Gaskell said it could open up a world of opportunities for other area companies and organizations.
"I read a story about a place in Iowa," Gaskell said. "There was a school system that wanted to go with wind power, so they put up one large (wind turbine.) That was in 1997. Now, there are 300 systems within 45 miles of where they put that one up.
"That's our hope here," he said. "If we can do this, it proves that it worked."
Gaskell said he has spoke with several area agencies who have expressed interest in utilizing wind energy, but have been reluctant to go through all of the studies and research necessary to make it happen. In a way, he said, the PWWSD is taking on this project on behalf of those organizations.
"If you don't know that it will work and everyone tells you that it won't," Gaskell said, "you back off and wait for someone else to do it. We have hopes that maybe we can make this thing fly.
"We're anxious," he said, "but not nervous about it. We're just going to push this thing until we can find out if this is feasible. Hopefully we can put up one and let people come by and take a gander at it."
PITTSBURG —
