5/13/2008
Darrin Stineman
It took more than six months to work out the details, but a change in Saline County code that will allow individuals to install their own wind-generated energy systems received final approval Tuesday.

The Saline County Commission unanimously approved the amendment, which will accommodate about a half-dozen people who have approached Planning and Zoning Director Vicki Koepsel in the past year about installing their own wind systems.

County resident Richard Nelson told commissioners that he primarily uses propane and wood-burning appliances to heat his home, but that he would like to convert to wind.

“I’m getting older, and someday I might not be able to cut firewood,” Nelson told commissioners Craig Stephenson, Sherri Barragree and Randy Duncan. “Even though I won’t pay for this in my lifetime, (wind energy) is still something I can utilize to reduce my utility bills, and then pass it on to somebody else.”

Koepsel said she developed the new regulations in response to the requests she has received from individuals and because of the national shift away from oil, which is selling at record highs, and coal, which is believed to be harmful to the environment.

For more on this story, see Wednesday's Salina Journal

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