It wasn't a very windy day Dec 21, 2005, when Bob Meyerson of Atwater flipped the switch on his new wind turbine for the first time, but that didn't dampen the enthusiasm of those present to witness the commissioning of the new wind machine.  It was, at least symbolically, the final step in the first phase of a project Meyerson has worked on for nearly a year.
    The turbine must be broken in much like a new vehicle or outboard motor and consequently was shut down again until a windier day arrived.  The contractor returned to Atwater last week to restart and monitor the equipment's performance.
    Meyerson, a banker since 1977, was looking for an additional channel for acting on his many personal interests.  "I've  alway been curious about environmental, social and political issues and I've been involved in the economic development of the area." he said.  "I hoped this could represent another 'crop' of the local farmers.  Since the 80's I've worked to enhance farm income and it seemed the best opportunities for farmers were as contractors."
    The 120-foot lattice-style tower was erected on land south of Diamond Lake leased from Leroy and Barb Everson by Winkelman's Environmentally Responsible Construction (WERC) and is owned by Meyerson's recently formed company, Diamond Wind Energy, LLC (DWE).  Although the 20-kilowatt designation means that the wind machine erected by DWE can produce 20,000 watts of power, that level is achieved only when wind speed surpasses 26 mph: smaller wattage will be produced at slower wind speeds.  The minimum wind speed for cut in is 8 mph. At every step of the way, the output remains at 240 VAC and 60Hz of frequency. When the power being produced by the wind machine goes up, the amount of current produced goes up.
    Meyerson leases the Everson land on a kilowatt-hour generated basis.  "They wanted to get involved," Meyerson said of the Eversons.
    Most individual families, however, do not have the necessary resources to simply start a wind energy operation on their property.  The DWE tower on the Everson's property represents a financial investment of close to $50,000.  Winkelman predicts that the tower will pay for itself in 10 years, but Meyerson has a more "wait and see" outlook when it comes to realizing a return on his investment.  Some of the things he needs to wait and see about are the number and value of tax credits and/or exemptions, the number of kilowatt hours generated, the fluctuating price he is able to get for the power generated and how strong the interest in decreasing American energy dependence remains.
    The tower is topped by a "farm-sized" Jacobs turbine which WERC president David Winkelman predicts will produce electricity at an annual average rate of 28,000 kilowatt hours - more than enough to power a small farm for the entire year.   The Jacobs name has a long and respected history n the wind power industry.  Joseph and Marcellus Jacobs of Montana came up with a way to provide electricity to their remote ranch in the 1920's by harnessing wind power and founded the Jacobs Wind Electric Company. During the 1930's they moved the company to Minneapolis.  The Jacobs' manufactured wind energy systems and marketed them to isolated farmers and ranchers around the world.
    Jacobs' "grid interconnect" wind machines have been installed all over the United States for the last 50 years.  Before the grid interconnect wind machine was available, they were used for charging battery banks for the individual property owner.
    According to Winkelman, the equipment features the latest version of the Jacobs inverter which efficiently synchronizes with Kandiyohi Power Cooperative with minimal power loss. There are two meters located at the site. One measures the power produced and the other measures the power used.  The sysem also includes an automatic shutdown feature for when the power grid is down.
    Winkelman explained how the wind energy system works at a press conference following the commission of the DWE turbine.
    First the wind catches the 31-foot rotor (propeller).  The rotor turns the shaft, then gears which turn six times faster than the rotor.  The shaft from the gear box turns the generator and electricity is produced by the spinning generator.  The electricity then travels down wires to a cut-off switch on the tower.  If the cut-off switch is on, electricity goes to an inverter in a near-by building via underground wires.  This inverter has electronics which synchronize  with the power company. The electricity is sent to the power company lines from the inverter, but the power company goes off-line for any reason, the inverter instantly turns off.  The amount of electricity sent to the power company is metered inside the same building and a check or credit is issued each mon to DWE.
    Kandiyohi Power's cooperation in this project has been both welcome and necessary.  Although some renewable energy proponents perceive utility companies as putting obstacles in their way, Meyerson and Winkelman do not hold that perception.  Dan Tepfer of Kankeyohi Power Cooperative was on hand to oversee the commission of the DWE turbine last month and also attended the following press conference to help answer questions.  When the subject of Kandiyohi County's goal of beng energy neutral by the year 2015, he said, "We'll be in business either way.  We want to be part of it.  It's the investment we have in infrastructure that is our asset"