Central New York Wind Farm Turbines Meet Their End In Controlled Demolition

Here's something you don't hear or see often. A wind farm demolition. A friend of mine alerted me to a wind farm demolition he and his wife witnessed today, September 18.

Madison Wind Farm Demolition

The Madison Wind Farm, a power generation plant with seven turbines located in Madison, New York, about 30 miles north of Norwich, New York, was taken down in a controlled demolition.

According to a release, the wind farm was constructed in 1999-2000 and was the first wind farm completed in New York State with an operational lifespan of 20 to 25 years.

Wikipedia notes that the wind farm consisted of seven Vestas V66-1.65 MW wind turbines that were capable of generating enough energy to power up to 10,000 homes.

Read More: New York State Fall Foliage Updates

Why Has The Project Come To An End

The project has come to the end of its lifespan because it is no longer economically viable, with current turbines being out of production and parts hard to find, in addition to being expensive.

The seven turbines were detonated at the base and fell at a prepared landing zone. According to the release, the turbines will be taken apart and transported away. Small debris will be cleaned up, and the land will be restored to pre-wind conditions as close as possible.

Some of the reasons for the demolition process versus using a crane to dismantle the seven turbines include being a faster process, taking into account safety risks, less cost, and no crane walking impacts on the land.

Video Of The Demolition

Check out this spectacular video on YouTube of the demolition below, taken by Syracuse.com.

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