Wind Energy and Lake Resources - Great Lakes Wind Collaborative

Extent and location of the wind resource (capacity)
Wind prospecting
Great Lakes Data

Li, X., S. Zhong, X. Bian, and W.E. Heilman. 2010. Climate and climate variability of the wind power resources in the Great Lakes region of the United States. Journal of Geophysical Research 115: D18107. http://www.geo.msu.edu/research/climate/wind/2010_JGR_Wind.pdf This study evaluated the variability of low-level winds across the Great Lakes basin using both a 30-year wind data set and a high resolution climate data set. Examining both spatial and temporal factors, the authors found that while some variation occurs seasonally (likely due to ice cover dynamics and large-scale atmospheric oscillations), the spatial variation throughout the region is relatively small. Overall findings suggest that areas over several of the Great Lakes are more suitable to wind development than most land-based sites.

New North. 2007. New North Wind Energy: Northeastern Wisconsin's Welcome to Wind Energy Industries. 12pp. http://www.thenewnorth.com/resources/windproposalgeneric2.pdf This report argues that no other region in the Midwest has the unique combination of advantages that Northeast Wisconsin has for the growing wind energy industry: Strong manufacturing potential, nearby access to some of the nation's best wind resources, strong existing markets and excellent workforce and transportation assets.

National Renewable Energy Laboratory. 2006. Low Wind Speed Technology Phase II: Developing Techniques to Evaluate the Designs and Operating Environments of Offshore Wind Turbines in the Mid-Atlantic and Lower Great Lakes Regions. http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy06osti/37940.pdf This fact sheet describes a subcontract with AWS Truewind, LLC to study offshore wind and wave environments of the Atlantic and lower Great Lakes regions by estimating available wind power resource.

Hersey, Tom. November 2005. Erie County Shoreline Wind Study: Final Report. Erie County Department of Environment and Planning, NY. 51pp. http://www.greengold.org/wind/documents/104.pdf This study assesses the potential for wind power generation along the Erie County shoreline through accurate wind speed measurements and identifies economic prospects for distributing wind generated power in Western New York.

Meishen Li and Xianguo Li. 2005. Investigation of wind characteristics and assessment of wind energy potential for Waterloo region, Canada. Energy Conversion and Management 46(18-19): 3014-3033. This study examines the wind characteristics for the Waterloo region in Canada based on a data source measured at an elevation 10 m above the ground level over a 5-year period (1999-2003) with the emphasis on the suitability for wind energy technology applications.

Lopes, Sandra L. 2004. Winds of change: renewable energy and the location of wind turbines in Prince Edward County, Ontario. Master's thesis, York University. Description not available.

Hingtgen, John S. 2003. Offshore Wind Farms in the Western Great Lakes: An Interdisciplinary Analysis of their Potential. Master's Thesis, University of Madison-Wisconsin. http://www.mrec.org/Wind_Energy/Hingtgen%20Wind%20Thesis%2004.pdf This thesis is an interdisciplinary study of the potential of offshore wind farms in the western Great Lakes. It includes an opinion survey of representatives of the public, an analysis of potential offshore sites, an estimate of the potential power and energy available, an extensive review of existing European experience, and the discovery of locally relevant information.

Ontario Wind Power Task Force. 2001. Harnessing wind power in Ontario: Ontario Wind Power Task Force Final Report and Recommendations: Presented to the Ontario Government. The Task Force. http://www.canwea.ca/images/uploads/File/Resources/OntarioWindPowerTaskForceReport.pdf This report explores the recommendations of the Ontario Wind Power Task Force after it conducted extensive research exploring the potential for development of wind power as a significant renewable energy source in Ontario.

Canadian Wind Energy Atlas. http://www.windatlas.ca/en/index.php This Wind Energy Atlas web site aims at developing new meteorological tools to be used by Canada's wind energy industry. It offers the possibility to browse through the results of the numerical simulations that were run on all of Canada in order to determine its wind energy potential.

Great Lakes Bathymetry Maps and Data. http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/greatlakes/greatlakes.html NOAA and the Canadian Hydrographic Service collaborated to compile and offer public access to Great Lakes bathymetric data. The new bathymetry provided a more detailed portrayal of lakefloor topography, and reveals some lakefloor features seen for the first time. The website offers data, imagery, links to data products including posters and CD-ROMs, preview versions of CD-ROMs offering access to images, and a ArcIMS Map Interface to Bathymetric Contours. Note: Although 4 of the lakes are published, the project was suspended before Lake Superior was completed.

Land Policy Institute. The Land Policy Institute Wind Prospecting Tool Prototype. Michigan State University, Land Policy Institute. http://www.landpolicy.msu.edu/wpt/WPT_summary.pdf This document presents the Wind Prospecting Tool developed by the Land Policy Institute for the state of Michigan, and designed to help the wind energy industry identify suitable areas for development.