A windfall for wind power
Huntley residents should be familiar with the Illinois Commerce Commission.
That's the state panel that ruled on ComEd's proposed transmission line route through Huntley, ending nearby residents' hopes of stopping the project.
The commission recently issued a decision that could have an even greater impact on Huntley and other communities in McHenry County.
The commerce commission voted last month to allow long-term agreements between electric utilities and wind farm developers.
Before the change, only one-year contracts were allowed.
The move, supported by wind energy advocates in Illinois, should open up the state's wind energy market, which is already getting a boost from state and federal tax credits and incentives.
Advocates say the change will help ensure greater price stability for wind farm operators, electric utilities and consumers.
"We will see a lot more projects built in Illinois," said Kevin Borgia, executive director of the Illinois Wind Energy Association. "They will know the market is there."
Huntley is the site of a proposed wind farm Pancor Construction hopes to build near Interstate 90 and Route 47.
Nearby Community Unit District 300 could also benefit from the rule change. Along with two other suburban school districts, District 300 is exploring the possibility of building a wind farm downstate to offset its energy costs.
On a related note: Speaking of wind turbines and District 300, a teacher at Dundee-Crown High School has proposed putting up a windmill at the Carpentersville school.
If electricity teacher Nick Linden is successful in securing approval and grant money for the project, Dundee-Crown could be one of two schools in District 300 with a wind turbine.
The other, Hampshire High School, could soon have a commercial-scale turbine in its backyard. District 300 officials hope the turbine will generate enough energy to offset a good portion of the energy consumption at the Hampshire campus, which also includes Wright Elementary.
In contrast, Dundee-Crown's turbine would be on a small scale and used mainly to educate students about renewable energy.
Linden's desire to illustrate classroom concepts for his students is commendable. Hopefully he can surmount the considerable funding and regulatory hurdles in the way of Carpentersville's first turbine.
Going mobile: I received word this week that delivery of the mobile annex for the Huntley Area Public Library has been delayed.
The library will use the annex to house its children's department and on-site programming in hopes of alleviating a space crunch at its current building.
The library planned to open the annex to public in March; I'll let you know if the delay in delivering the unit changes that time frame.
• Jameel Naqvi covers the village of Huntley and school districts 158 and 300. E-mail him at jnaqvi@dailyherald.com.