Community-scale wind power blossoms in rural Alaska

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A wind power project under construction in Kwigillingok, a village in western Alaska.

Alaska's alternative energy revolution takes a new twist this summer when 15 turbines spin to life over a trio of Southwest Alaska villages, in one of the most notable wind projects ever to reach the Bush.

Key to the $10 million project has been Alaska's renewable energy program, which provided about half the funding, while another state program provided most of the rest. Launched in 2008 when oil prices spiked, the state's renewable energy effort has provided almost $175 million to study 227 potential projects statewide. Of those, 84 were completed or are in development.

The projects will save utilities and other organizations about $35 million annually once they're all online in two years, said Peter Crimp, head of the state's renewable energy program.

Some already provide energy: In Juneau, the airport now uses underground warmth to heat the terminal and melt sidewalks. Wood-fired boilers heat the school in Tok and reduce fire hazards by using wood thinned from the forest. And the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward heats its building with special pumps that grab warmth from Resurrection Bay seawater.