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Monday, August 09, 2004
Wind Farms
Finally the daft idea of running a modern economy off windmills is getting some bad press. Even Prince Charles, usually a reliable eco-nut is against them:
The Prince of Wales believes that wind farms are a 'horrendous blot on the landscape' and that their spread must be halted before they irreparably ruin some of Britain's most beautiful countryside.Good for Prince Charles, though this is hardly the sort of thing he should be using his bully pulpit for. And Philip Stott updates that old time nursery rhyme for us:The Telegraph can reveal that Prince Charles, who has an abiding interest in environmental issues, has told senior aides that he does not want to have any links with events or groups that promote onshore wind farms.
"Mary had a little kite;Feel free to add your version to the comments.
Its feathers all rusty red.
It flew into some wind farm blades,
And now the kite is dead."
Personally, I have nothing against wind farms if an entrepreneur thinks he can build them without government handouts. But no one I'm aware of has ever considered it a sensible way to generate electricity profitably. But it's been a very convenient way to harvest government subsidies.
Update: A commenter asked about pictures of birds that got the CuisinArt treatment by wind turbines. Some can be found here. Of course the late John Daly's site is a great source for info on eco-scams of the greenhouse kind.
Posted by Kevin Jaeger on August 9, 2004 in Science | Permalink
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Comments
They seem to have a nasty environmental impact on local bird populations. The last time I was passing through southern Alberta I stopped to take some windmill pics. The ground immediately under them was littered with a significant number of dead birds, many sliced clean in half.
Posted by: Sean | 2004-08-09 2:09:39 PM
Hi All - Good point on the need for entrepreneurial approach rather than government handouts, on this as well as other things. Newest wind generators in the 5 Kw range are almost on a par with diesel (in terms of capital cost, ongoing cost obviously lower.) And don't forget that in the 1920s many farms/ranches had their own wind generators. Then came government sponsored 'rural electrification'. WRT dead birds Sean, I wonder if you had the presence of mind to get a picture, esp of one sliced in half. I would be interested to see it.
Cheers. Eric.
Posted by: Eric MacLeod | 2004-08-09 2:34:23 PM
I took some pics of the birds - I'll look through my archive DVDs this evening.
Posted by: Sean | 2004-08-09 3:45:33 PM
Hi All - Thankyou for the update WRT dead birds, a sight I have not seen at the foot of wind generators in the Georgian Bay region or in PEI. I note the pictures provided, however, were linked from a site which appears to be that of a Spanish, somewhat PETA-like group. Given the tone of the whole article I had some misgivings about the genuine danger to bird life. The John Daly site seemed excellent and put me in mind of Bjorn Lomberg,( http://www.lomborg.com/ ) another debunker of junk science. I could not find any reference to dead birds on that site though.
Anyway, I agree with Kevin's initial assertion that running an economy off wind power is a daft idea. However, for small applications, in cases where someone wishes to be off the grid, it is a near viable alternative. We should be careful not to throw out the baby with the bath water.
WRT the other, I suspect that the concern over bird casualties is a weak argument thrown in by anti wind / pro animal commentators to shore up their position. Ted Kennedy, I have read, is a fierce opponent of wind generation projects off Martha's Vineyard. Is his concern birds or view?
Cheers. Eric.
Posted by: Eric MacLeod | 2004-08-10 6:50:04 AM
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