Dennis D. Canavan, director of Land Use and Growth Management, asked county commissioners for permission to begin a process that would ultimately allow on-site use of

wind turbines in St. Mary’s County. The full Board of County Commissioners approved the request, clearing the way for Canavan to present a Zoning Ordinance text amendment to the St. Mary’s Planning Commission.

“A text amendment is needed,” Canavan said, because Schedule 50.4 of the Zoning Ordinance does not allow for the use of wind turbines. He noted interest in allowing turbines in the county began when Commissioner Jarboe shared that his constituents had expressed interest in alternative energy.

“They (wind turbines) are a great idea” said Commissioner Lawrence Jarboe. “We need to let people know about the savings,” he added, explaining that a friend had installed a solar panel, watched his electricity bill go down and is looking forward to making money selling energy back to the utility company. Jarboe prophesized the same thing could happen when using wind turbines.

Caravan’s department is recommending that Schedule 50.4 of the Zoning Ordinance be amended to allow onsite, small wind energy systems in all county zoning districts. The property on which a turbine can be installed can be residential or commercial.

However, “onsite consumption means energy generated by a turbine can not be sold,” said Yvonne Chaillet, a LUGM planner, who has been working on the text amendment. “The energy can only be used by the property on which it is generated. Turbines can generate up to 100 kilowatt-hours of electricity. Height requirements are 80 feet on one half to 1 acre parcels of land. On parcels exceeding 1 acre, the turbine must not exceed 150 feet.

The next step for LUGM is scheduling a public hearing with the Planning Commission, hopefully by the end of September. The Commission can continue the hearing or approve the text amendment and send it back to the Board of Commissioners for a public hearing and final approval. The county has 125 days to complete the text-amendment process from the day of the first commissioner’s meeting on Aug. 8. Hopefully, county residents will know if they can go green with wind by the end of the year.