MET is Up

by Linda Brenckle

The wind blew steadily high atop Ball Hill on Thursday, cooling the crowd of 70 or so gathered on this open, sunny spot to celebrate the opening of Northborough’s new meteorological environmental tower (MET).    The 165-foot tower, stabilized by steel guy cables affixed to concrete anchors, will gather wind, air temperature, and pressure data for the next year to determine the feasibility of installing a permanent wind turbine at this or one of the two other locations, Davidian Farm and Mount Pisgah.

The erection of the tower is a milestone in a transparent and comprehensive process that began in August of 2007, according to Mr. Ed Cahill, a member of the Wind Turbine Committee, that has involved the collaborative efforts of local organizations and individuals, the Northborough Engineering Department, the Davidian and Tougas families, the Offices of US Representative Jim McGovern, State Senator Harriet Chandler, and State Representative Harold Naughton, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, the UMass-Amherst Wind Energy Center, the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative,  the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, and  Sustained Energy Developments, Incorporated, the project managers.

In their addresses before the ribbon-cutting by Senator Chandler, Selectmen Fran Backstran, and Mr. Maurice (Moe) Tougas, Senator Chandler and Representative Naughton both praised the progressive thinking of those promoting the project.  Speaking of a need to develop renewable energy sources, Senator Chandler described the people of Northborough as early adapters, pioneers in the process, “Northborough is a real leader in this.”  Her sentiment was echoed by Representative Naughton, “it tells us about the people that look beyond their own generation to the next,,.. (it is) reflective of the values, integrity, and trust that people put in each other.”  Further he praised the ability of parties in the process to develop strategic alliances for the betterment of the community.

All speakers acknowledged the generosity of Mr. Tougas in permitting use of his farm for erection of the MET and eventually the wind turbine.  Mr. Ron Hall of the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, described Mr. Tougas as, “a tremendous steward of this land for agriculture here who has been very progressive in his thinking on how to keep his farm in workable fashion for agriculture as well as to look into new ventures for alternative energy and wind.”   For his part, Mr. Tougas began 30 years ago investigating installation of solar panels on farm building roofs to provide power for his farm operations.  So, when the idea of a wind turbine for Northborough was advanced in 2007, he was quick to step forward to offer use of his land. “Quite a few farms are doing this,” he says, “we have a site; let’s see if we can make it work.”