Mayor Newsom Announces Recommendations of San Francisco´s Urban Wind Power Task Force
California Political Desk
September 30, 2009
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Mayor Newsom today announced recommendations from San Francisco´s Urban Wind Power Task Force, charged with finding ways to encourage the expansion of local wind power generation in San Francisco. The Task Force´s 29 recommendations include working at the state-level to exempt small wind turbines from property tax increases, installing more City-owned small wind demonstration sites, and exploring offering permitting cost refunds.
"In order to meet our ambitious renewable energy and climate goals, we need to pursue all technologies available to us," said Mayor Newsom. "Anyone who´s ever been San Francisco knows that we have parts of the city that get a lot of wind. It´s time for San Francisco to start harnessing its collective ingenuity to construct small-scale urban wind sites on city and private property."
Other recommendations include developing a "San Francisco Wind Map," implementing a wind anemometer (wind meter) loan program to allow potential wind customers to borrow anemometers from the City to better understand their wind resource, and exploring the possibility of revising city-wide height limits to allow for greater wind power generation.
The Task Force, comprised of representatives from the small wind industry, environmental community, bird advocates, green building, labor, workforce development, research labs, prospective residential and business customers, State regulatory agencies, PG&E and relevant City departments, was created by Mayor Newsom and then-Supervisor Tom Ammiano in July 2008 to explore the potential for small-scale wind generation and identify barriers to
expanding small-scale wind power generation in the City. The Task Force met monthly for nearly a year to explore key issues facing small-scale wind power development in urban environments, and addressed a number of key issues, including small wind technologies, testing and certification, understanding the wind resource and data collection, permitting; costs and incentives, potential impacts on flying animals; clean tech and workforce development opportunities, increasing public awareness, and possible City
demonstration sites.
"We currently have only two City-owned small wind turbines—one at the Randall Museum and one at the San Francisco Zoo, but several other City sites might make good wind demos," said Jared Blumenfeld, Director of San Francisco´s Department of the Environment.
The complete Urban Wind Power Task Force Recommendations Report is available online, where it is posted on the Environment Department´s homepage, www.SFEnvironment.org.
"In order to meet our ambitious renewable energy and climate goals, we need to pursue all technologies available to us," said Mayor Newsom. "Anyone who´s ever been San Francisco knows that we have parts of the city that get a lot of wind. It´s time for San Francisco to start harnessing its collective ingenuity to construct small-scale urban wind sites on city and private property."
Other recommendations include developing a "San Francisco Wind Map," implementing a wind anemometer (wind meter) loan program to allow potential wind customers to borrow anemometers from the City to better understand their wind resource, and exploring the possibility of revising city-wide height limits to allow for greater wind power generation.
The Task Force, comprised of representatives from the small wind industry, environmental community, bird advocates, green building, labor, workforce development, research labs, prospective residential and business customers, State regulatory agencies, PG&E and relevant City departments, was created by Mayor Newsom and then-Supervisor Tom Ammiano in July 2008 to explore the potential for small-scale wind generation and identify barriers to
expanding small-scale wind power generation in the City. The Task Force met monthly for nearly a year to explore key issues facing small-scale wind power development in urban environments, and addressed a number of key issues, including small wind technologies, testing and certification, understanding the wind resource and data collection, permitting; costs and incentives, potential impacts on flying animals; clean tech and workforce development opportunities, increasing public awareness, and possible City
demonstration sites.
"We currently have only two City-owned small wind turbines—one at the Randall Museum and one at the San Francisco Zoo, but several other City sites might make good wind demos," said Jared Blumenfeld, Director of San Francisco´s Department of the Environment.
The complete Urban Wind Power Task Force Recommendations Report is available online, where it is posted on the Environment Department´s homepage, www.SFEnvironment.org.
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