Wind power seems so promising, yet it still faces obstacles. It is disheartening when even the Kennedy family has a problem with wind power, because it may block their family's view of the water from their compound. I suppose they have yet to live within view of a smokestack. Many in this country would presumably prefer looking at wind turbines to a coal-fired power plant. The Cape Wind project--a large wind farm project--was almost doomed for a while (at least in part due to the same argument presented by the Kennedys). I think it is sad that some people view wind farms as eyesores, when in other parts of the country (e.g. Tennessee), wind farms are tourist attractions. I wondered recently about how feasible wind turbine use would be in a large city like Chicago, which is obviously known for being the "Windy City." I then read a week later that there are plans to install wind turbines on top of the Daley Center, the main state courthouse in Chicago. It would be great if this project takes off, such that other highrises do the same. Maybe some cities can produce more of their own power with projects such as this one, instead of importing power from other areas. Wind power could then be a power source in urban and rural areas. As with the tourists going to the wind farm in Tennessee, many tourists would probably love to see the wind turbines when they visit cities like Chicago. Hopefully, people along the coastlines who dislike wind farm projects will see the light as well.
posted by Elizabeth @ 11:47 AM
1 Comments:
Hi Elizabeth,
I wondered recently about how feasible wind turbine use would be in a large city like Chicago, which is obviously known for being the "Windy City." I then read a week later that there are plans to install wind turbines on top of the Daley Center, the main state courthouse in Chicago. It would be great if this project takes off, such that other highrises do the same. Maybe some cities can produce more of their own power with projects such as this one, instead of importing power from other areas. Wind power could then be a power source in urban and rural areas.
It's an interesting idea and wind turbines may indeed be installed in urban areas. However, it's important to understand that cities use far more energy than rural areas, and their wind speeds are typically lower as well. The latter is very important, because the energy that the wind contains is a function of the cube of its speed. This means that in the long run, power generated in the rural U.S. is still going to wind up being transmitted to urban areas. This is not a bad thing--wind is helping to revitalize the economies of many rural communities.
Altogether, U.S. wind resources are enough to provide several times our current electricity use, although other sources (or storage) would still be needed because of the variability of the wind.
The key ingredient for wind's continued expansion? Continuing the federal wind energy production tax credit (PTC), which reduces a wind farm owner's tax payments by 1.9 cents for each kilowatt-hour of electricity the wind farm generates during the first 10 years of its operation. The PTC is currently scheduled to expire at the end of 2007. If the credit is extended for several years, we will see much greater use of this clean energy resource. For smaller turbines, the key incentive is a Small Turbine Investment Credit, something that doesn't yet exist. Readers can help support these and other pro-wind laws here.
Also, plug-in hybrid autos can be manufactured with technology available today. They'll get 80 or so mpg, and they will allow wind energy (for example) to take a bite out of our oil imports. Readers can support this concept through Plug-In Partners.
Regards,
Thomas O. Gray
American Wind Energy Association
www.awea.org
www.ifnotwind.org
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