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Introduction
Greener Energy: The Case for Wind Power at SJU and CSB
The over-1500 year history of the Benedictine tradition gives both the College of Saint Benedict (CSB) and Saint John's University (SJU) a longer-term perspective than it would to other, younger institutions. This longer view of history and St. Benedict's admonition to "...regard all tools and goods of the monastery as sacred vessels of the altar" (RB 31:10) and to believe "...that the divine presence is everywhere" (RB 19:1) gives both institutions a special responsibility for good stewardship of the environment. It comes as no surprise that SJU and CSB should consider carefully the use of wind-generated electricity to replace some of the fossil fuel generated electricity that both campuses purchase from Northern States Power Company (NSP). In meetings held two years ago, both CSB and SJU officials agreed that wind power offers many environmental benefits, but the dogged fly in this green ointment was whether wind power was worth the cost.
This study seeks to extract this fly and answer the question: should SJU and CSB invest in wind powered electricity? It provides first, a look at wind markets to see if other people think that wind power is a good idea; second, it gives a background on wind as an energy source and notes its availability at SJU and CSB to make sure we actually have the resource we need, and third, the study assesses the costs and benefits both quantifiable and non-quantifiable to determine the trade-offs of choosing wind power over the status quo and concludes by recommending that a wind turbine be built at CSB and/or SJU.