Getting directions to the Watson farm is about as easy as it gets – head south of Saskatoon on Highway 219 and start scanning the horizon for a giant wind turbine at Beaver Creek.
The Watsons are among the first Saskatchewan farm families to take advantage of SaskPower’s net metering program, which encourages customers to generate their own environmentally responsible electricity.
In this case, it is supplied by an 18-metre-high state-of-the-art wind turbine perched on top of a hill that rises 24 metres above the South Saskatchewan River.
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The technology of turning wind into power is familiar to the Watsons.
“We had 32-volt windmills for years before the power came. So we knew they did work,” said Ron Watson, the elder statesman of the mixed farming operation nestled in the rolling hills 25 kilometres south of Saskatoon.
The Watsons grow wheat, barley, oats, canola and peas and have 250 head of commercial cattle with Charolais and Red Angus influences.
Ron recalls windmills on the farm dating back to the 1950s that ran everything from the lights to the water pump.
The latest 4,100-kilogram behemoth was his son Ken’s pet project. Ken wanted to take advantage of SaskPower’s net metering program.
He estimated the new 20-kilowatt ReDriven wind turbine will cost the farm $80,000.
There are a couple of programs to help offset that cost. Saskatchewan Research Council offers a 35 percent net metering rebate of eligible costs, up to a maximum of $35,000.
And the federal government has a green energy tax incentive that provides a 50 percent capital cost allowance for such projects.
“We figure it will take 10 years and it should pay for itself,” said Ron.
If a farmer had to borrow the money to buy the equipment, the payback time would be extended to the point where it might not be feasible, he said.
The wind turbine has been operating since Aug. 7. During the first month, it delivered an average of 64.5 kilowatts of clean AC power each day for a farm that typically uses 70 to 80 kilowatts of energy.
Right now it is struggling to keep up with the electricity needs of Ron and his wife Irma and Ken and his wife Carla and their three children. But the Watsons are convinced that over an entire year, it will generate a surplus of energy for an operation that typically uses about $3,200 of power annually.
The first month’s results are a little deceiving because fall is the worst time of the year for wind strength. The wind was howling when they erected the structure with a 14-tonne crane but it stopped blowing for the following two days.
Reduce heating bill
Any surplus energy the farm generates can be stored for up to one year and used to offset future electricity needs. It cannot be sold back to SaskPower.
Ron said excess energy could be used to help reduce heating costs on the farm, which are already minimal due to a wood-burning boiler.
While Ron and Ken crunched the numbers and are confident the wind turbine will pay for itself, that’s not what this project is all about.
“If you go and buy a new half-ton, do you worry about it paying for itself or do you just drive it? That’s my figuring,” said Ron.
The real benefits will be environmental, not financial.
“It saves them burning all that coal and gas to make electricity. If enough of us did it, it would really help,” said Ron.
He has heard the province once had 6,000 windmills. Now there are maybe 50 privately owned wind turbines. Ron thinks more rural landowners should be investing in the technology.
“It’s not a big deal for a farmer to buy one of them when you compare it to a combine or a tractor,” he said.
Ken figures a lot of people are sitting on the fence waiting to see some results from the early adopters before they buy.
In the meantime, he’s making plans for how best to use his wind-generated energy.
“We’ve got the grain fans. We’re going to need them this fall,” Ken said.
