According to UPC Wind, a North American wind power company, Hawaii's largest wind energy facility, Kaheawa Wind Power (KWP), generated more than 125,000 MWh of electricity in 2007, exceeding its production targets. During the past year, KWP also continued to implement its Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP), designed to ensure a net conservation benefit for local endangered species, according to the company.
‘As Maui's first utility-scale wind project, Kaheawa Wind Power demonstrates that clean, renewable energy production is a feasible, viable commercial opportunity for Hawaii,’ says Paul Gaynor, president and CEO of UPC Wind. ‘In addition, we are pleased that this project is playing a significant role in helping Hawaii to achieve a state-wide goal of 20-percent renewable energy generation by the year 2020.’
KWP also began to restore native plants at the project site that were displaced during construction. As part of the restoration project, KWP contracted with Hoolawa Farms to propagate 15,000 specimens of the native plant a'ali'i (Dodonaea viscosa) from seeds collected by volunteers during the development and construction of the wind farm.
