Wind Farms

I think they are a good thing, if located where there is plenty of wind.

Dunno how true the bird strike phenomenon really is. (I think this is the only significant environmental issue)

I have no patience with the people who think they are an eyesore...these are probably the same people who would fight tooth and nail to preserve and old wooden corn grinding windmill.
Personally I think they look great.

Del

The downside is a bit of a hit to the landscape, and the noise if you're right nearby, but in general, I'm a fan.

They are installing quite a few of them in west Texas, and they seem to be positive for both the ranchers and the power grid.

My concerns would be more about the utility company than the generators - I'd want to make sure that they knew what they were doing, and were investing in the best technology.

Depends on the size and design of the turbines...

Turbines have historically had problems with gear box reliability, but that is getting better.

The main issues around reliability are on the electrical side, switch gear etc..

Most maintenance is done by climbing up, which means small trucks in the area, but major issues are dealt with by replacing the nacelle. That means very large cranes in the area.

My concern is the faith that some environmental groups have in wind turbines. They seem to think that a 1 MW turbine can be counted on to produce 1 megawatt of power, but that is only true during optimal conditions. I have read articles stating that wind turbines can be counted on to have a 30% capacity factor, that is over a year the turbine would only produce 30% of the power that it would have produced had it been able to generate a continous 1 megawatt.

The second concern has been hinted at already. Wind farms are probably compatible with animal grazing but growing crops that need to be planted and harvested with large machines might be difficult because of the need to navigate around the turbine towers.

Has anyone heard the argument that the amount of energy needed to produce, install and maintain these wind farms is never recovered by the working life of the farm? Does anyone have any evidence of this or to the contrary? The problem I've found when trying to research this is that the pro wind generator people all say it's nonsense and the anti wind generator people claim it to be true but neither side seems to have any substantial evidence to back up thier claim.

A very good, comprehensive analysis! So rated. I concur the impact on birds and bats is mainly if the turbines are (mis)placed in hereditary migration routes. Some thought and observation can prevent this. Payback time should be between 1 and 2 years, working life extensive if maintenance performed on schedule.

My niece is a lawyer who deals with aggreements between landowners and oil/gas companies so the the oil/gass companies can have access to their equipment. Apparently the landowners are rewarded quite highly for these access rights.

What arrangements will the windpower companies make. In one case described on another thread the windpower company wanted a 99 year lease on the ranchers land which might not be very beneficial to the landownder as the lease payments would have to equal to the taxes plus the profits that any agricultural use of the land might bring.

The access to the wind turbines might require small vehicles or very large cranes so the roads would have to be more than just dirt trails. I would hope that the electrical interconnections would be buried underground to a sufficient depth that normal agricultural activities wouldn't place them in danger.

I am pro-nuclear but that does not mean that I am anti-wind. We just need to have reasonable expections of both and recognize the strengths that they both have to offer. I believe that they can co-exist.

I once read that a megawatt of nuclear generation would require a litle less than one half of a square mile, while a megaway of wind power would require about 300 square miles and then there are the relative capacity figures for the two technologies, wind is about 30% while CANDU reactors which can be incrementally refueled while operating, a few bundles are changed every day have approached 90-95% over a one year period. Other reactor technologies required that the reactor be shut down during the fueling process which takes several days.

Hi MACA, I live close to large windmills, and the myth about birdstrikes are not true. Yes, last year (3. april) we had one impact with a RØD GLENTE (a rare, reddish small falconlike bird), but the fact, that it was reported shows the unlikelyhood af these events. We have seasoning geese, swans, all kinds of small birds and residential crows, seagulls etc., and its not a problem. Traffic kills much larger numbers of birds, than mills does.

I only have this danish link, but its a credible source:http://www.dof.dk/index.php?id=nyheder&s=nyheder&m=visning&nyhed_id=364

Noise generated are very low, a small "woosh" when the blades turns right over your head, no transmission or other machinesounds.

Impact to environment when installed depends on the sensibility; if its farmland, there is no lasting effect to the ground around the mill other than the one track pebble road for installing and maintenance. The farmer can use his land, as if nothing have happened. If its untouched, uncultivated landscape, then the mills does not belong there, it would be a shame to put manmade machinery in pure nature, I think. Of course the powerlines need to be at least 1 meter in the ground (20 kV).

About 4 km from where I live, there are plans of raising 5 mills, each with a total height of 127 m. I'm not worried at all, as I can see the mills in the horizon, but not hear, smell or feel the mills. There is a highway going through between me and close to the mills, that I can hear on quiet summernights. Nearest resident to the new mills will be 1 km away. It will not have any effect to the price of my house.

Though, I would recommend a distance of at least 1 km to the nearest residents due to shadows and light reflections.

I agree with others on this thread about the future for windmills, as we can time most our powerconsumption to windy days and nights, if we wanted to.

The danish windpowerindustry has provided a good site, where you all can read about facts about windmills; www.windpower.org ,also in english.

That's all folks from moe

I live in Northern California not far from the hundreds of mills on the ridges just south east of SanFrancisco. You pass them as you drive over Altamont Pass. Just recently the Audubon Society, (I think), tabulated the numbers of various species of birds killed during migration season. I don't remember the totals but it seemed they counted a significant number, sufficient to get the mills stopped for a couple of months a year.

This appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle about last Spring and I'm quoting from memory but anyone interested could start the research there.