Wind farms

[stitch 0]

Opinions ?

Are these things going to be a part of a larger solution or the biggest white elephant ever ?

It is alarming how quickly these farms are going up. The puzzling thing is the majority of the ones I pass (And I pass a lot of them. All over the country.) Aren't even turning, yet the wind is blowing 30 MPH.

"No cookies for you"- GFD
"I don't think I like the sound of that" ~ MB65
Don't be a "Racer Hater"

[quade 3]

They will be a part of the solution. Not all, but a part.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[LongWayToFall 0]

All the ones near us are busted. I have seen some online that are much more massive, maybe they are easier to maintain than a bunch of smaller ones, but I still think they are not very practical.

[quade 3]

We've had wind farms in SoCal for decades. They work just fine. As with anything mechanical, yeah, they sometimes break down, but if you've ever seen the shots of the ones out by Palm Springs you'd KNOW they work.
http://www.palmsprings.com/services/windmill.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Gorgonio_Pass_Wind_Farm
http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=33.916667,-116.6&spn=0.01,0.01&t=h&q=33.916667,-116.6

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[stitch 0]

At the very least, they do a fine job keeping the smog in LA.

"No cookies for you"- GFD
"I don't think I like the sound of that" ~ MB65
Don't be a "Racer Hater"

[jimmytavino 16]

just because blades are NOT turning
does NOT mean "they are busted"..
wind Farms which can include dozens of towers
produce clean renewable electricity.....as a COLLECTION of towers..
I'm sure that most of us Know,,, that the blades are designed to Feather Themselves, either on a timetable,, OR when wind speeds surpass
certain sensible limits....

CAN'T have a blade spinning so fast that it seperates from it's HUB!!!!!!!

think of all the ANTS and BUGS.. that could be 'harmed" when that blade hits the ground !!!

( about as ridiculous a concern , as is the concern that wind turbines, kill birds.... )

IF the initial and HUGE capital Outlay can be weighed against the Long term energy production . which is possible from the extended lifetime of the mechanism... hopefully this approach will prove to be a fiscal AND environmentally sound approach..
PLUS they Just LOOK so Damn Magestic!!!!

jmy

[billeisele 122]

should be part of the solution but not THE solution

in SC we would have to build a wind farm the entire length of the coast, 3 miles deep to supply wind power equivalent to the 2 nuclear plants that are presently being permitted

that ignores certain issues like capacity factor, economics and available transmission
Capacity Factor: Nuclear 90+%, Wind 22%

Give one city to the thugs so they can all live together. I vote for Chicago where they have strict gun laws.

[rushmc 18]

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They will be a part of the solution. Not all, but a part.

there is only ONE farm in the country that has actually paid for itself. billvon posted to that one. As for the rest? None have covered costs and made profit. They are only being built to placate the enviros and politicians and can only be afforded because of gov subsides

"America will never be destroyed from the outside,
if we falter and lose our freedoms,
it will be because we destroyed ourselves."
Abraham Lincoln

[marks2065 0]

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They will be a part of the solution. Not all, but a part.

there is only ONE farm in the country that has actually paid for itself. billvon posted to that one. As for the rest? None have covered costs and made profit. They are only being built to placate the enviros and politicians and can only be afforded because of gov subsides

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wind farms produce so little electricity that they are not worth the short term costs. 1 coal plant generates more electricity than many wind farms. this is one reason Obama wants cap and trade, to make coal building wind farms cheaper than using coal. I hope everyone likes paying double for electricity.

[shah269 0]

They look neet!
But it's a shame we have to import them from Denmark and are not making them ourselves!

Life through good thoughts, good words, and good deeds is necessary to ensure happiness and to keep chaos at bay.

The only thing that falls from the sky is birdshit and fools!

[dreamdancer 0]

more opinions here:

http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=3599358;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;;page=unread#unread

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[marks2065 0]

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They look neet!
But it's a shame we have to import them from Denmark and are not making them ourselves!

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But Obama said that this will help the US make jobs and save on energy costs. did he lie again?

[billvon 2,435]

>But Obama said that this will help the US make jobs and save on
>energy costs. did he lie again?

I'll let you decide:
==================
U.S. Wind Power Industry Installs More Than 2,800 MW in Q1 2009
Published April 29, 2009

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The wind energy industry in the United States installed 2,836 megawatts of new generating capacity through the end of March, bringing total installed generating capacity in the country to 28,206 MW, the American Wind Energy Association announced.

The national trade association for the wind energy industry in the U.S. issued its report Tuesday on projects that were completed in 15 states during first financial quarter of the year.

The newly installed capacity would power the equivalent of 816,000 homes, and the total generating capacity in the U.S. is now enough for more than 8 million homes, the organization said. The wind power in operation in the U.S. helps avoid 52 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, according to the group.

Although the volume of installations during first three months of the year is good news, it is tempered by the projection that further additions in generating capacity for the remaining nine months of the year will total 3,400 MW. In contrast, wind energy capacity in the U.S. grew by 8,358 MW last year, which represented a 50 percent jump in total capacity.
=================
Domestic manufacturing on the rise

Of the top ten global utility-scale wind turbine manufacturers in
2007 (Vestas, GE, Gamesa, Enercon, Suzlon, Siemens, Acciona,
Goldwind, Nordex, Sinovel), six (Vestas, GE, Gamesa, Suzlon,
Siemens, Acciona) now have a U.S. manufacturing presence,
soon to be followed by a seventh (Nordex) . Even more dramatic
is the rise in domestic wind turbine component manufacturing,
the companies that make materials and components for wind
turbines. More than 70 manufacturing facilities were opened,
expanded or announced in the past two years (2007-2008),
including over 55 in 2008 alone.

This domestic job creation is driven by two factors:

- Growth in the U.S. wind market (over 8,500 MW installed in
2008, up from over 5,200 MW installed in 2007); and

- Continually increasing share of domestically made
components (the U.S is approaching 50% domestic
component production for the average wind turbine installed
in the U.S. today, up from under 30% in 2005).
=======================

[marks2065 0]

so the entire wind grid is equal to 10-15 coal plants.yes it cuts down on emissions but still not big enough to do the job.

As far as the jobs created here, it says 70 factories were open, expanded or anounced, how many of these 70 are anounced? anouncing and actually doing are 2 different things.

[ryoder 1,400]

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They work just fine. As with anything mechanical, yeah, they sometimes break down..

Like this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nSB1SdVHqQ

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[billvon 2,435]

>so the entire wind grid is equal to 10-15 coal plants.yes it cuts down on
>emissions but still not big enough to do the job.

Not yet! Guess we have to build more.

>As far as the jobs created here, it says 70 factories were open,
>expanded or anounced, how many of these 70 are anounced?

Well, per the AWEA, 35,000 jobs were created last year in the wind industry, so a significant number of them have already opened.

[marks2065 0]

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>so the entire wind grid is equal to 10-15 coal plants.yes it cuts down on
>emissions but still not big enough to do the job.

Not yet! Guess we have to build more.

>As far as the jobs created here, it says 70 factories were open,
>expanded or anounced, how many of these 70 are anounced?

Well, per the AWEA, 35,000 jobs were created last year in the wind industry, so a significant number of them have already opened.

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why aren't all made in USA? Should our tax money be spent on american jobs and products? do we have enough land to build enough wind farms to make a real difference? to make them profitable?

[billvon 2,435]

>why aren't all made in USA?

?? Because we operate in a worldwide economy.

>Should our tax money be spent on american jobs and products?

Yes, and it _is_ being spent to promote US jobs and US products. Look at the loans for Evergreen Solar and Tesla. Look at the tax credits for small wind systems - a market the US dominates. (We make over 98% of the small wind systems in the world.)

>do we have enough land to build enough wind farms to make a real
>difference?

Definitely. The US has been described as the "Saudi Arabia" of wind power. Our massive land area and our mountain ranges give us access to some of the best wind sites in the world, and using those, we are now the largest producer of wind power in the world. Last year we had 28 gigawatts of wind capacity installed, or more than 1% of our total usage. North Dakota alone could generate 138 gigawatts of electrical power. Five states (ND, SD, TX, KS and MT) could generate all the electricity we use.

That's not a good goal, of course, since wind power is somewhat variable, so we still need baseline generation plants like natural gas and nuclear. But it could mean not having to build new power plants for decades to come.