Dan Magness wanted to place wind turbines on his 350-acre farm in Harford several years ago, but the county didn’t allow them.
Wind does not whip across most of low-lying Harford at a great enough velocity and force to make turbines practical, but a handful of farmers want to use the higher elevation of the rural, northern part of the county including White Hall, where the Magness Dairy Farm & Museum is located, to generate their own electricity with turbines.
Three farmers in the past year have contacted the county about erecting the turbines, and legislation that would allow turbines on residential and commercial property is expected to come before the County Council by the end of the year.
“I’m interested in looking at it, mostly just because of our location; it’s a higher elevation than the rest of the county,” said Magness, who called the county Monday about the turbines.
C. John Sullivan III, Harford’s deputy chief of staff for agriculture, said he expects more residents to gain an interest in turbines as the council takes up the topic.
Harford would join Baltimore County, which is examining zoning laws that limit turbines to 15 feet.
In May, Carroll became the first county in the state to pass legislation allowing turbines. It allows two turbines per property, and limits them to 150 feet tall.
They must also be a distance equal to 20 feet plus their height from property lines and utility wires.
Harford Councilman James “Captain Jim” McMahan is studying Carroll’s ordinance while working with County Executive David Craig’s administration to craft legislation that would limit certain aspects of the turbines, such as height.
“The main thing we have to address is that they don’t become monuments after a set of years, and people say, ‘Well, these really aren’t economically feasible anymore,’ ” McMahan said.
Nearly 20 residents in Carroll have applied for permits for turbines, and only one has asked for the maximum height of 150 feet, said Michael Maring, chief of the county’s bureau of permits and inspections.
Turbines about 50 feet tall cost about $12,000, but if they are closer to 150 feet, McMahan said they can cost about $30,000.
But turbines could earn Harford residents a property tax credit of up to $2,500 under the county’s green energy program.
The council would need to amend the program to include turbines.
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