Author

Pete Coventry

Date of Award

5-2010

Document Type

Capstone

Degree Name

M.S.

Keywords

Geographic Information System, Harvesting wind energy, Energy generated

Department

Geography

First Advisor

Heather Hicks

Second Advisor

Steven R. Hick

Abstract

This project focuses on Boulder County, Colorado as a case study to demonstrate how a Geographic Information System (GIS) can identify potential wind harvesting areas. A step by step demonstration will illustrate the steps needed to determine such harvesting areas and their wind potential. Once potential wind harvesting areas have been identified, concluding analysis will determine the amount of energy generated in efforts to offset current energy use. Harvesting wind has dated back to the 7th century and is looked at as a mature technology (Edwards 2003). Over the past few decades, public attitudes towards wind harvesting is becoming increasingly popular in efforts to become more sustainable. Boulder County's unique terrain and complex weather patterns creates a challenging case study to determine optimum locations to harvest wind. The results of this analysis will help to determine whether harvesting wind energy will in fact help offset the County's energy needs in efforts to becoming a more sustainable county.

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