A change in the wind for Amherst RCMP’s energy
By TOM McCOAG Amherst Bureau 5:57 AM
MHERST — Const. Paul Calder doesn’t know whose electricity he is using to power his computer.
Paul不知道他的電腦現在用的電來自於哪裡。
"It could be from our wind turbine or it could be Nova Scotia Power’s electricity. I never know because the system we have is that seamless," the RCMP officer said in a recent interview at his office.
「可能是來自我們的風機，也可能是Nova Scota電廠的。我從來不知道，因為我們用的系統是這麼的無縫隙」RCMP的工作人員在最近的訪談裡提到。（「無縫隙」是啥翻譯啊 -_-）
A 25-metre-high wind turbine sits in the detachment’s backyard. It was installed shortly after the new station opened nearly two years ago and was designed to provide 40 to 60 per cent of the office’s electrical requirement.
兩年前，也就是新電廠開始運轉後不久，一部25公尺高的風機豎立在他們的後院，並計畫供應他們辦公室40-60％的用電需求。
"When I say it’s seamless, I mean that when it switches back and forth between the power generated by the windmill and the power generated by the power company, it does so without us knowing," Const. Calder said. "There has never been even a flicker of the lights when the switch is made."
「我說的無縫隙，是指當系統在電廠與風機供應的電力之間切換的時候，我們沒有感覺」Paul說。「系統在切換的時候，連電燈都沒有閃過」。
On this day, the wind is barely moving, registering only 4.5 kilometres per hour, and the turbine’s 15-metre blades sit motionless, which means the detachment is using Nova Scotia Power electricity.
這一天，沒什麼風，記錄上呈現風速只有每小時4.5公里，15公尺長的葉片沒有動作。也就是說，現在正用著Nova Scota電廠的電。
"We often get asked if the windmill ever works, but it’s mostly from people who happen to drive by on the Trans-Canada Highway on a day like this when there is no wind," the constable said, chuckling. "I can assure you that it does work."
「我們常被問風機到底有沒有在轉，但通常都是在沒風的日子，那些剛好從trans-canada公路經過的人問的，」Paul笑著說，「我可以跟你保證他真的會動」。
The three blades on the Atlantic Orient Canada Inc. turbine are designed to spin any time there are sustained winds of at least 16 kilometres per hour. The blades stop spinning when winds reach a sustained 90 km/h or gusts hit 120 km/h.
"That’s why, on some really windy days, you won’t see the turbine spinning," Const. Calder said.
From Jan. 31 to the end of May, the turbine generated 10,829 kilowatt hours of electricity. Of that, 1,800 kilowatt hours were surplus to the detachment’s needs and were automatically transmitted to Nova Scotia Power’s electrical grid.
從一月31日到五月底，風機發出10829度電，當中有1800度電是用不到、多出來的，然後被自動送到Nova Scotia的電網。
The detachment’s power bill is reduced when that happens, but "the reduction doesn’t show on the electrical bills we get here at the detachment," Const. Calder said.
這些送給電網的電雖然有反映在電費支出上，但沒有被載明在電費單上。
The turbine’s spinning blades do create some noise, but "it isn’t any louder than the traffic that passes by us on the highway," he said. "You get used to it."
風機運轉的葉片的確會製造一些噪音，但「沒有比經過我們的公路所發出的聲音要大」，他說。「總之會習慣」。
He said none of the officers have been bothered by shadow flicker, the effect caused by the shadows of the spinning blades.
他說沒有工作人員被葉片運轉時產生的陰影閃爍干擾到。
This wind turbine behind the RCMP detachment in Amherst generated more than 10,000 kilowatt hours from February to the end of May.(TOM McCOAG / Amherst Bureau)
在RCMP後院的風機，自二月到五月底間，生產超過一萬度電。
沒有留言:
張貼留言