Turney Chosen For New Broadband Technology Test

A new broadband internet technology is coming to the Village of Turney, in Clinton County.

Earlier this month it was announced a 300-thousand dollar grant from the technology nonprofit US Ignite’s “Project Overcome” will be used to bring an experimental RF over Fiber technology and intelligent routing to Clinton County to an area under served with access to high speed internet.

Researchers will use the RF over Fiber technology in which multiple low-bandwidth radio frequency (rf) devices are digitally stitched together to simulate a high-bandwidth device. The technology can provide high-speed internet access to areas lacking a fiber broadband infrastructure.

The key to the technology is to mount some of the equipment at a high enough elevation to increase the coverage area. An agreement was reached this week with Wade Farms in Stewartsville to place some of that equipment on top of their grain elevator.

If the approach in Clinton County proves successful, hopes are the process can be replicated in other rural areas that are yet to be served by fiber internet access.

Estimates are that at least 17 million U.S. residents lack the basic internet access necessary for remote work, online learning, and telemedicine.

The Clinton County Initiative is also calling on Clinton County residents to help the team map the coverage in the county as well as think about what other challenges could be solved by working together. They invite anyone living and/or working in the county to check out their web pages and take a quick survey.

https://www.maximizenwmo.org/clinton-county or https://www.maximizenwmo.org/broadband-project-overcome

You can also jump directly to the survey at https://www.maximizenwmo.org/clinton-county/survey_tools/dreaming-big-survey-in-clinton-county