Let the Sun Shine In: 4 Farms Open Doors to Highlight Renewable Energy

You’ve been wondering about that wind mill that went up down the road for a while now.  Or you’ve been curious about those solar panels on the neighbor’s barn that you watched fall into place, piece by piece.  How much did those installations cost?  How much electricity do they provide?  Could you afford to do the same?

Well, now you can get plugged in to the details of renewable energy at a farm near you - without having to peek over the fence. During the month of September, four farms around New York will open their doors to the public for a guided tour of their energy saving stategies and renewable energy systems.

This year’s farm energy field days include something for everyone.  Jay and Polly Armour at Four Winds Farm will describe their professionally installed PV electric system and share other techniques to reduce fossil fuel use. Jay and Polly Armour operate a 24 acre diversified organic farm.  The farm raises produce, heirloom seedlings, grass-fed beef, pasture raised turkeys, and intermittently pasture-raised pork and eggs. The centerpiece of the operation is passive-solar heated and earth-cooled straw-bale vegetable barn with attached greenhouse.   A  14-kw grid-intertied PV electric system is situated on the barn roof, which is being financed by a combination of a NYSERDA grant and a low-interest loan.  A permanent raised bed system in the vegetable garden requires very little tractor time and hence very minimal fuel use.  The Armours also transport vegetables to market in a diesel van converted to run on waste vegetable oil (WVO). More info on the farm at http://users.bestweb.net/~fourwind/

This field day is free and open to the public.  Refreshments will be served. For specific dates, times, and locations, see below. Contact Violet Stone at 607-255-9227 or vws7@cornell.edu. This event is co-sponsored by Cornell Small Farms, SARE, and NOFA-NY.