Renewable Energy and Property Re-use Assessments of Surface- Mined Land

Transcription

1 Renewable Energy and Property Re-use Assessments of Surface- Mined Land WV Public Energy Authority Meeting November 9 th, 2011 Center for Geotechnical, Environmental and Applied Sciences (CEGAS) and The West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Center

2 Background Project Sponsors: West Virginia Division of Energy Appalachian Regional Commission Two Project aspects, both involving former and active surface mine properties 1. Pilot stage research grants for performance of renewable energy projects for potential surface mine reutilization 2. Performance of Initial Wind Assessment Screening using SoDAR (Sonic Detection And Ranging) Technology for Wind Energy Development Opportunities on Surface Mine Sites Project to be completed in late 2012.

3 Pilot stage research grants for performance of renewable energy projects for potential surface mine reutilization Up to $50,000 available for each grant, with 1-to-1 matching funds (cash and in-kind) required Initial Call for proposals occurred in March, 2010 Major Project Component: In order to be considered for funding, project must involve the use of active or former surface mine lands Currently six projects are on-going; one additional solar array installation project in-the-works

4 Pilot project #1: Planting of Arundo donax test plots Arundo donax, or giant reed, has been planted on 3 surface mine properties to determine initial potential for establishment on surface mine properties as a renewable energy crop Sites are located in Upsher, Wyoming and Logan County Project Partners: National Mine Reclamation Center and White Technologies After planting, soil samples are being collected periodically to evaluate soil condition changes over time, including organic carbon content (potential carbon capture) Arundo donax is a potential bio-fuel and carbon capture source, but is also being used as a chemical feed stock in the biodegradable plastics industry. In Italy, M&G Polymers make plastic bottle resins using Arundo donax

5 Arundo donax Plantings

6 Pilot project #2 and #3: Biomass Tree Plantings Hardwood trees have been planted on former surface mine sites to improve soil and water quality, increase terrestrial carbon capture, and later, produce wood for commercial use Sites are located in: Randolph County, Webster County Project Partners: -Randolph County Redevelopment Authority and Appalachian Hardwood Center; -Webster County Economic Development Authority and Plum Creek Timber Company After soil preparation ( soil ripping ), species planted include red oak and white oak, with lesser amounts of black cherry, sycamore, poplar et al.; initial reports suggest growth is satisfactory; growth monitoring continues Nearly 49,000 trees planted as part of these 2 projects

7 Hardwood Tree Plantings

8 Pilot project #4: Assembly of Marketing Packages for Economic Redevelopment of Surface Mine Properties Development of Data packages to encourage reuse of surface mine properties for industrial, commercial, residential and/or recreational use, depending on site features and related infrastructure Initial Sites are located in: Boone, Webster, and Clay County (fourth site to be identified) Project Partners: Marshall University CEGAS and various coal companies / land owners Available infrastructure components, including water, sewer, electric, natural gas, roads, et al. are being identified, along with specific site features that would augment site-specific redevelopment options

9 Pilot project #5: Biomass Tree Planting Hardwood trees are scheduled to be planted (Spring 2012) on a former surface mine site currently containing a grass / fescue dominated ecosystem. Hardwood tree planting will improve soil and water quality, increase terrestrial carbon capture, and later, produce wood for commercial use Site is located in Monongalia County Project Partners: Appalachian Hardwood Center and United Coal Company After soil preparation ( soil ripping ), various hardwood tree species will be planted

10 Pilot project #6: Solar Panel Array Installation Installation of a roof-mounted, approximately kilowatt solar panal array Site is located in McDowell County, at Mount View High School Project Partners: Mount View High School and McDowell County School Board After installation, the system will be monitored for output, used as an educational tool for students (during school and after-school programs), teachers, parents and the local community, plus correlated with an ongoing ground level ozone study, determining the effects of ground-level ozone levels and subsequent solar energy output

11 Solar Panel Installation Mount View High School

12 Performance of Initial Wind Assessment Screening using SoDAR (Sonic Detection And Ranging) Technology for Wind Energy Development Opportunities on Surface Mine Sites Utilizing SecondWind s Triton SoDAR unit Low power required (<10 watts continuous)from solar panels and deep-cycle batteries; no additional power required Continuous satellite transfer of data on 10-minute intervals Records wind direction / wind speed and other atmospheric conditions on 4 to 5-second intervals, from 40 to 200 meters above ground surface Unit is housed and transported from site to site on standard size 10-foot utility trailer with 4X4 vehicle

13 Sonic Detection and Ranging (SODAR)

14 Sonic Detection and Ranging (SODAR)

15 Summary of Project Activities to Date First Site: ICG Eastern, near Cowen, Webster County; Project Timeframe: May September 2010 Objective: Initial screening to assess wind development opportunities on former surface-mined land Results indicate 5.06 m/s wind speed at 80 meters; 5.36 m/s at 100 meters for the project timeframe

16 ICG Eastern, near Cowen, Webster County, WV Project Timeframe: May September 2010

17 Summary of Project Activities to Date Second Site: Grant County, WV on former surface mine land area Project Timeframe: November 10 December 1, 2010 Objective: Short-term collection of meteorological tower and SoDAR data for data correlation study Results indicate SoDAR data closely mirrors recorded meteorological tower data (>98% correlation) Results suggests SoDAR data collected above meteorological tower heights is quality information

18 Summary of Project Activities to Date Third Site: Cotiga Development Company, Mingo County, WV on former surface mine land area (Consol of Kentucky - Surface Mine No. 1, near Lenore, WV) Project Timeframe: December March 2011 Objective: Initial screening to assess wind development opportunities on former surface-mined land during winter months. Wind speeds during the 3-month timeframe were 5.97 m/s at 80 meters; 6.37 m/s at 100 meters

19 Finding a New Site Used Geographic Information System (GIS) to overlay annual wind speeds (AWS Truepower annual wind speed modeled data) with surface mines. Selected those sites that had wind resources greater than 6m/s at 80m height. Based on this criteria, we found a group of sites on the Kanawha, Raleigh and Fayette County border. We researched mine operators and landowners; one of the prominent landowners was Penn Virginia Resources Partners; found that they were very interested in wind development possibilities; had property in Kayford Mountain area Placed SODAR unit at Kayford Mountain site on March 3 rd, 2011; Still operating at site.

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22 Current Data / Next Steps Wind speed average for March through September: 5.5 m/s at 80m height, 5.7 m/s at 100 meters, and 5.8 m/s at 120 meters From ~mid-october to early November, wind speed averaged 6.0m/s at 80 meters, 6.3m/s at 100 meters, and 6.7m/s at 120 meters (*expect wind speed averages to be higher during winter months) Plan to leave unit on site until March, 2012 to get a full year of data Evaluating potential next sites to move unit in 2012

23 Kayford Mountain Area Area has existing infrastructure, including road network and electric lines, and nearby substation, which could augment future wind energy development