S.C. Johnson & Son Inc. on Tuesday fired up two new wind turbines, which are providing the electricity needed to power its Waxdale manufacturing plant in Mount Pleasant.
The rural Racine County plant manufactures consumer products such as Scrubbing Bubbles, Glade and Windex.
The 415-foot wind turbines will produce about 8 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity annually, enough to power 700 homes in a year. Combined with two cogeneration turbines that have been in place since the mid-2000s, the facility is now able to produce an average of 100 percent of its electrical energy onsite.
“SC Johnson has been making green choices for our products and operations for decades. Our work toward reducing the company’s dependence on fossil fuels at Waxdale is an important step,” said Fisk Johnson, chairman and chief executive officer of S.C. Johnson. “Waxdale’s new wind turbines enable us to manufacture our products while having an even smaller impact on the environment – and that’s something the people of S.C. Johnson are very proud of. The turbines are yet another symbol of our commitment to future generations.”
Waxdale, which is the size of 36 football fields, is home to additional clean energy initiatives. Two cogeneration systems were put in place that use waste methane gas from a nearby public landfill and clean burning natural gas to generate 85 percent of the facility’s electrical energy.
The new wind turbines will provide the remaining 15 percent.
“This project shows that when wind energy and global manufacturing come together, it can have a phenomenal impact on improving our environment,” said Cathy Stepp, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. “We celebrate the great leadership shown by SC Johnson, as well as encouraging other large companies to make similar efforts at finding greener ways to do business.”
