Community Owned Wind Farms

UPDATE 2/13
David Tidball left this comment with two excellent links.

It is possible that you have not heard of the community wind movement in the United States. Anyone interested should check out our website at www.windustry.org. Though the mechanisms here in the USA are somewhat different than the UK, Windustry has been working on community-friendly wind energy for nearly ten years. Further information on a broader range of community friendly economic policies could also be found on the website of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance at www.ilsr.org.

This article out of the UK tells how communities have formed co-ops with alternative financing that allows them to own their own wind farms that actually returns a fair amount on the investment.

Our country needs alternatives such as this as there are many like myself who would welcome the opportunity to participate in projects that make us less oil dependent. It's the direction we must go. The other choices are losers.

In the East Midlands, a co-operative group has become the first owners of a community wind farm. This venture is part of an initiative that the government hopes will be replicated across the country and provide an effective and sustainable new form of financing for cash-strapped wind farm projects.