BY MILES LAYTON
Let’s share some good news for folks living along the Chowan River regarding those annoying blinking “Christmas” lights on the wind turbines.
The Albemarle Observer recently received a report about Timbermill Wind’s plans to install Aircraft Detection Lighting systems — red lights placed on top of the wind turbines to prevent pilots from crashing into the structures. The lights would only be activated when an aircraft approaches, not blinking from sunset to sunrise.
Timbermill Wind is a project of Apex Clean Energy, a national company specializing in utility-scale wind, solar and storage.
Director of Public Engagement for Apex Clean Energy Brian O’Shea shared a few updates for Bertie County residents:
- A location for the radar tower has been identified.
- A vendor for the ADLS has also been identified and design of the system is underway
- Apex has determined that they likely do not have to rerun fiber to each turbine and should be able to connect to their existing cables, simplifying the construction process.
- Once the engineering and structural details are finalized an application will be submitted to the FAA by this summer. The approval can take up to 90 days.
- Other permits with Chowan County, NCDEQ, and the Army Corps of Engineers may be necessary. Apex is working to determine if they will need a new permit, or if they can do this work under their existing permit.
- Next is the FCC application. Apex will have to submit an application to the FCC to operate the radar. This step happens after approval from FAA because this is time limited on how long the FCC permit lasts between approval and when the system must be operational.
- After these approvals are received, construction can commence, which is expected to take 6-9 months.
- Completing the above steps means that the system could be installed and operational by Summer 2026.
Timbermill’s move comes after a windstorm – see what I did there – of protest from folks who bought into the dream of calming Carolina skies at sunset by the Chowan River, but learned that their paradise had turned to a hellish scene similar to living next to the Griswold’s house in Christmas Vacation.
Late January, around 60 very upset people attended a meeting featuring NC Senator Bobby Hanig, R-Currituck, and NC Representative Ed Goodwin, R-Chowan, to share their concerns at the Occano Pool House in Bertie County.
Worth noting, a wind turbine’s lights blink every 2 seconds, or 30 times per minute – that’s 1,800 times per hour. And that’s the view up and down the river in places like Colerain, Black Rock, Occano and Point Comfort to say the least.
In related news, Carolinas Renewable Energy Development Assistance and Siting Hub (DASH) will hold a meeting between 6-7:15 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 25 in the College of Albemarle Culinary Arts Building.
Residents of Chowan County and surrounding areas are invited to attend to learn more about renewable energy project developments in the area and to share perspectives on large-scale renewable energy.
RSVP for the meeting at: https://forms.gle/1fvU7c6agNXX4emG9 and learn more about this initiative at https://carolinas-dash.org/
“My guess is that something solar or windmill at each of these locations has occurred in the past few years, and they’re looking to get a retrospective from the community,” said a key leader on this issue, Kate Wemple Jordan. “I’m hopeful that the intent is to better prepare communities for the REAL impact. I plan to discuss a topographical light mitigation study that was never done appropriately and neighboring counties that are negatively affected without a voice to deny this type of development.”
One response to “Timbermill Wind Provides Update on Aircraft Detection Lights”
[…] Timbermill Wind Provides Update on Aircraft Detection Lights: Timbermill Wind plans to install Aircraft Detection Lighting systems on its turbines to reduce blinking lights, activating them only when aircraft approach. The system could be operational by Summer 2026. Community concerns led to meetings with local officials, emphasizing the need for effective impact assessments on renewable projects. […]