Bar set high for wind energy by LARRY RULISON

ALBANY -- Putting up a wind turbine in your backyard isn't as easy as it looks.

That was made crystal clear Monday at Community Wind Energy 2008, a wind power conference held at Empire State Plaza.

Although most people would probably love to have a wind turbine generating low-cost power in their backyard, the reality is that doing so is expensive and time-consuming.

But judging from the conference, plenty of companies are willing to do the work.

That included Four Winds Renewable Energy LLC, a wind and solar electric system installer based in Steuben County.

Owner Roy Butler, a conference speaker, gave a "consumer primer" about installing small wind turbines.

"It's a lot of work," he said. "It's not a spectator sport."

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