By Shelia Watson

Two wind monitoring stations, one in the Grand Strand area and one in North Charleston, are being constructed as part of a project that will determine the feasibility of using wind power to generate commercially viable electricity.

The South Carolina Wind for Schools is a project of the S.C. Institute for Energy Studies, a state-chartered research and development organization housed at Clemson University whose mission is to develop energy resources to promote economic development and energy security. The project is being managed under the umbrella of the Clemson University Restoration Institute.

Nick Rigas, director of SCIES, said the project is “not only educational, but (it) creates awareness for the use of wind power along the South Carolina coast as a precursor to future offshore wind development.”

Clemson is partnering with students and engineers from Coastal Carolina University, Santee Cooper and the Savannah River National Laboratory to construct the station on Waties Island, an undeveloped barrier island in Horry County, today and Wednesday.

Three anemometers, or wind gauges, will be installed at 30-, 40- and 50-meter increments on a mobile 160-foot tower, which will be equipped with wind direction, barometric, temperature and solar sensors.

Construction of a similar station at the Restoration Institute on the former Navy base in North Charleston will begin July 18.

Data will be collected for one year to determine the potential of wind-based energy sources. The Savannah River National Laboratory will analyze the results to assess opportunities for large-scale and commercial wind-power generators.

The initiative should help set the stage for South Carolina to serve as the industry hub for offshore wind development along the Atlantic Coast, Rigas said.

“Our mission is to educate students and the public on this clean and environmentally friendly alternative energy. These two stations will serve as the first steps in establishing a viable coastal and offshore wind program in South Carolina that can help diversify our energy resources and lead to economic development.”

Part of the educational component involves five students from the Academic Magnet High School in North Charleston joining the team installing the tower at the Restoration Institute in July.

Rigas led the Southeast Regional Offshore Wind Symposium, which was in Charleston earlier this year and hosted by Clemson, Georgia Institute of Technology, North Carolina State University and Coastal Carolina University.

The high-profile sponsors of the event—Santee Cooper, Savannah River National Laboratory, the S.C. Energy Office and the U.S. Department of the Interior-Minerals Management Service—underscores the critical nature of wind power and its potential, Rigas said.

The Wind for Schools project received a monetary boost from SC Launch!, a collaboration of the South Carolina Research Authority that provides funding and assistance to ventures with economic development potential. Its $15,000 grant will help fund startup of the project.

“SC Launch! strongly supports alternative energy demonstration projects within the state, as well as pre-company and university projects in new technologies that will strengthen South Carolina’s knowledge economy,” said Bill Mahoney, CEO of SCRA and acting president of SC Launch!