Question by Leown15: What are the concerns of wind power? (visual pollution, health effects, etc)?
A few other questions on wind power, as i’m very interested in this subject …….
– How expensive is wind power? (the construction, expensive to run)
– Is wind power used anywhere else in the worl apart from Australia?
– How sustainable are the reserves of energy?
10 points us for grabs!!
Best answer:
Answer by Michael
Google it!!
v.expensive to build.
All over the world.wind farms all over the world………..and at sea.
sustainable?? think …………….wind is natural so as long as Earth is here then wind should be there. The problem comes when there is too much wind and you have to shut them off at winds of 50mph.
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mandobob says:
May 21, 2013 at 2:34 pm (UTC 0)
Wind power is one of the most expensive forms of electrical generation, many times higher than coal, the largest fuel used to generate el;ectricity.
Some limited wind power generation has been constructed in many countries, almost all in the developed world (Europe, USA, some in Asia and Australia). The cost to construct and operate makes wind power uneconomic in typical developing countries.
The wind is always blowing somewhere on the Earth but calling wind energy sustainable is not the whole story. Wind power suffers from some important constrants in addition to high cost:
– Wind is not always blowing at one location which causes the power generation to be intermittent.
– Engineering constraints require generators to the constructed to optimize the generation which can make low velocity and high velocity winds unable to be used to generate power.
– electrical storage during times of high generation but low usage is a real problem.
You should google electrical power generation and look at some of the hits.
Bush Philosopher says:
May 21, 2013 at 2:46 pm (UTC 0)
Wind power is a subject that has interested me for a long time. I wrote a page on “Wind power problems, alleged problems and objections”; see source.
Yes, wind power is more expensive than power from coal; but not greatly more expensive and if you consider the damage that burning coal is doing to the atmosphere it can be seen that costs should not just be measured in dollars.
Wind power is sustainable. The wind does not blow all the time; a typical Australian wind farm produces about 33% as much power as it could if a strong, steady wind was blowing constantly.
Pork Shank says:
May 21, 2013 at 3:43 pm (UTC 0)
Leown,
Hopefully I can shed some light on your questions…
What are the concerns of wind power?
– The largest concern with large, commercial wind turbines is noise pollution and what damages can occur when a catastrophic failure happens. For instance, in the US, several towns have already passed laws ot prevent the large turbines form being built within a certain radius of the town.
How expensive is wind power? (the construction, expensive to run)
– Bigger isn’t always better. The huge mega-watt size turbines can cost millions to build and even more to install. In Europe, the newest focus is on smaller, residential turbines that are less visually obtrusive, quieter and cause less damage if they fail structurally. Each smaller unit can provide power to an individual home, which is the whole point anyway. The smaller units are much more cost effective at only a couple of thousand Euro.
Is wind power used anywhere else in the world apart from Australia?
– Yes. Wind power is being used in large and small scale throughout the world.
How sustainable are the reserves of energy?
– Sustainability issues with wind power are basically the same as any other mechanical means of power production. Moving parts have a service life. As long as the sun shines and the earth rotates on its axis, we will have winds. If you mean storing the electricity produced by a wind turbine, we are limited by current battery technology.
Hopefully I have answered your questions.