WYOMING — A new law will take effect in Wyoming next month, providing a new way for old windmill blades to be disposed of in shuttered coal mines around the state.
In the past, once used, these 170-foot-long fiberglass blades would wear out and have no proper disposal site, sometimes ending up lying in fields or other storage areas.
Wyoming saw that problem growing, which is why the state's Fossil Fuel Development Director Kyle Wendtland and others got to work coming up with a solution.
“When we drafted the bill, there were 72,000 blades laying on the ground nationwide," Wendtland said. “We looked at, where do we have space to put that kind of volume? Wyoming has its share of wind energy."
Wendtland said the number of blades on the ground across the country was a problem, with more expected to reach their final days within the coming years.
"The life expectancy on the majority of the blades is a 20- to 30-year life span," Wendtland said.
The problem was finding somewhere that could fit the massive blades. Until Wendtland and his team came up with a unique idea.
“It occurred to us that the mines would be an option for that because of the size and scale of Wyoming’s coal mines and the size of our pits,” said Wendtland.
Coal mines that are no longer in production presented an ideal solution for the disposal of these blades. It also created economic opportunity for the state, by allowing these mines to charge for blade drop-off.
"It creates a revenue stream when the mines hit their last pit or their final pit voids," Wendtland said. "They're not mining and creating revenue off coal anymore, but they can charge for this."
Wendtland confirmed that 25 percent of the revenue will be given to the state, and because the fiberglass isn't toxic, it doesn't present any environmental harm.
"It also adds some additional fill in those final pits to help fill them a little quicker," Wendtland said. "It was a really good, kind of novel solution."
It's a solution that is a bit ahead of its time. Wyoming will be the first state to allow this disposal, but Wendtland said it could be an example for neighboring states moving forward.
“The original bill passed both the House and the Senate with broad support, wide margins," Wendtland said. "So, we're really looking forward to moving this particular program forward now.”
