Most people don’t need daily reminders from the media about the rising costs of oil, gasoline and other energy prices. All they need is to check out the recent utility bills or to pull into a local gas station.
As much as the rising price of energy is putting the pinch on consumers, it is also having a major effect on the government, as energy prices are forcing many cities and towns to raise taxes in order to pay for the escalating fixed costs of energy.
In Everett, one local lawmaker is hoping that the city government might be able to save on longterm energy costs and help out the environment as well by turning to wind power.
Alderman Salvatore Sachetta introduced a piece at this week’s Board of Aldermen meeting, requesting that the administration look into installing a wind turbine behind the new park at the old General Electric site in West Everett, in the hope that the alternative energy source can power the nearby Madeline English School and the new Tremont Street Park. “In my travels, I’m starting to see these wind turbines popping up all over the place, and with the cost of energy being what it is, I thought why don’t we try one,” Sachetta said. “If it works there, then we can try it in other parts of the city.”
Sachetta is asking the mayor’s office and the Office of Community and Economic Development to look into the issue to see if it is feasible here and whether there may be grant money and federal or state funds for such projects.
The city’s director of community development, Marzie Galazka, was not available to comment on the issue this week, either to the Independent or at Monday’s Board of Aldermen meeting.
While wind power has gained interest as an alternative energy source as the cost of other forms of energy have skyrocketed, the process of gaining approval for such projects can be lengthy and controversial.
As with any other power generating station, wind farms must undergo a lengthy permitting process that includes involving the public in the process.
The Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources has prepared a model of bylaws that pertain to zoning and for approving wind farms that allows the city’s permitting authority -  in this case the Everett City Council -  to grant a license for a wind farm under certain conditions.
The conditions that such sites would need to satisfy include:
-ensuring that the specific site is an appropriate location for such use
-the use is not expected to adversely affect the neighborhood
-there is not expected to be any serious hazard to pedestrians and vehicles from the use
-no nuisance is expected to be created by the use, and
-adequate and appropriate facilities will be provided for the proper operation of the use.
The most public local example of the controversy wind farms can create was the recent attempt to construct one off the coast of Cape Cod, which fell through due to public outcry over the effect the wind farm would have on the views, the environment and local wildlife.