CHARLESTON Large wind turbines would be clearly visible two miles off the Carolina coast but would all but disappear into the haze eight miles out to sea, a new photo simulation shows.

Clemson's South Carolina Institute for Energy Studies created the simulation as part of Santee Cooper's research into the viability of building a wind farm off the Grand Strand.

The visual impact of the wind turbines has been a major hurdle for some projects in the United States and Europe.

"We think it's important to give people an idea of what it looks like," said Marc Tye, Santee Cooper's vice president of conservation and renewable energy. "We want people to form opinions based on the facts."

Earlier this summer, Santee Cooper and Coastal Carolina University placed two strings of buoys off the Grand Strand to measure winds. One was at the north end, near North Myrtle Beach, the other was at the south end, closer to Debordieu Beach.

Based on data captured by these buoys, Santee Cooper will build a tower to capture wind measurements at heights of more than 220 feet, slightly less than the height of a typical offshore wind turbine. Santee Cooper recently received proposals from five companies and is expected to award the design contract within a week. In all, the wind measurement tower will cost about $1 million. Tye said construction of the tower should start in early 2010.

Meanwhile, Clemson researchers used special software designed to show what large turbines would look like at various distances. One photo shows how a 12-turbine wind farm seven miles off the coast of Little River would appear under blue skies. In that photo, the turbines look like small white straws sticking up from the ocean.

A second photo shows what a wind farm would look like 8.7 miles off the coast of Debordieu on a cloudier day. In these conditions, the towers all but vanish into the haze. A third photo shows towers at distances ranging from two to eight miles.

The distance issue is important because it might be less expensive to build and maintain a wind farm closer to shore. At the same time, winds tend to be stronger farther offshore, which means they might generate more power. Tye said

"The problem is not whether it (a wind farm) can be done," Tye said. "It's whether it can be done cost effectively." He added that "so far, we haven't seen anything yet that rules it out, and that in itself is progress."

Santee Cooper's project is part of a surge in interest in wind power in South Carolina. Another notable wind project involves a consortium led by Clemson's Restoration Institute.

"We think it's important to give people an idea of what it (the wind farm) looks like. We want people to form opinions based on the facts."

Marc Tye, Santee Cooper's vice president of conservation and renewable energy

Originally published by Tony Bartelme; The (Charleston) Post and Courier.

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