Wind Energy: Not to Be Blown Away If you have ever traveled from Sacramento to Livermore, California, you cannot help but notice the giant wind turbines that are placed among the hills that are multiple stories high. I have always wondered how beneficial these wind turbines are, and what possible effects does it have on our economy and environment. In an article by the New York Times written by Diane Cardwell, she explains that in 2008 – 2009 the wind industry employed 85,000 people and 10,000 of those jobs have disappeared since, and with continued layoffs on the horizon (Cardwell). Cardwell also discusses that wind energy is not cost effective and the parts are heavy and expensive to transport, and that the federal tax credit for wind …show more content…
“But wind is only a little more expensive than [natural] gas, and once we put in the carbon price, it’ll raise the price of gas and make it comparable with wind” (Clemmitt). Wind is also a source that won’t run out and can effectively produce a large amount of power with little wind activity, and were only increasing that output as we make further advancements. In the long-run the cost to produce wind energy will come down as it also doesn’t use a fuel source. Environmental and health cost aren’t included in these cost analysis made against wind energy, if such figures would be taken into account, then wind energy would have no competition—radiation, acid rain, greenhouse gasses, …show more content…
We need to fund these projects that show great promise to ensure that we gain security in our energy goals. We need to think on a larger scale: we won’t have endless fossil fuels to support our energy needs for much longer. There is a finite amount of resources we can use to turn them into usable energy. Alternative energy isn’t limited by that, unless the sun implodes and the earth ceases to have an atmosphere. These carbon fuels are also are destroying our environment. While wind energy may not be the end all solution to energy security, but it’s a step in the right direction. The energy provided may not be as large as the carbon-based energy, but in time, it can be, and the long-term effects it causes isn’t worth the trade-off. If we are to use this carbon-based fuel effectively, it’s by using it to find means of replacing
While turbines do have storm modes that stop the rotors from spinning during severe weather, sometimes this fails and causes massive damage. Certainly, many more advances must be made before wind can become a viable power source in
The world is in need of fossil fuels. Without them, we would not have cars, airplanes, and not to mention enough energy. A lot of energy is produced from them. They are a very big support. Unfortunately, they are running out.
In the past, wind and solar power was just too expensive to create renewable energy compared to the energy created by fracking. Now that solar panels
Not only are these wind farms beautiful, but they also produce a ton of energy. More than one-third of Iowa’s net electricity came from wind in 2016 (State Profile and Energy Estimates- Iowa). “Iowa's wind resources place it among the nation's leading states in the percentage of in-state electricity generation from renewable resources other than hydroelectric power” (State Profile and Energy Estimates- Iowa). As an Iowan, I am proud that this renewable energy source is helping our state and country become more environmentally
For cleaner energy, people face a similar ordeal of wanting to acquire new options, yet unfortunately lack the necessary funds. However, people are minimizing the drawbacks mentioned. To support the advancement of new technology in medicine and cleaner energy, the government is providing more funding for each. “The world invested $329 billion in renewable energy in 2015, an increase of 4 percent compared to 2014 and surpassing the $318 billion spent in 2011 to set a new record, according to a new report by Bloomberg 's New Energy Finance” (Walsh, Ben).
Imagine a world where we have used up all of our nonrenewable resources and no longer have gas to power our cars, no coal to make energy, and no natural gas to power you household items. Well it might not be too hard to imagine, because it is predicted that in less than 75 years we will use up all of our natural gas, oil, and coal deposits. This is just one of many reasons that the government needs to put more funding into green energy. They not only need funding to find new sources of renewable energy but they also need to invest more in products that produce clean energy like solar panels, windmills, and turbines in dams. Climate change has been a center of attention for many years now, however it seems that very few changes have been made to slow or stop it.
The Associated Press reports, “President Barack Obama is ordering the federal government to nearly triple its use of renewable sources for electricity by 2020.” There are development programs such as the SunShot Initiative, that has been funded 60 million for solar energy research through the Department of Energy. Moore and Nava argue that, “Since 1973, U.S. government agencies have spent $154.7 billion on “renewable energy” with very little to show for it. Billions of dollars in subsidies later, solar still only comprises at most 0.2 percent of U.S. electricity production according to the Energy Information
With green energy supplying electricity to more than 14% of American homes, there is no doubt that it is a worthwhile endeavor.., Though highly contested, the Cape Wind Project, proposes a wind farm to be constructed off the coast of Cape Cod. The Harvard-educated Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an opponent of the project, expresses his doubts and criticisms of the project in his op-ed column printed in the New York Times, “An Ill Wind Off Cape Cod” which he composed when he first heard that the company Energy Management is trying to build a wind farm on Nantucket Sound. He utilizes a genuine tone in order to get his thoughts across. Francis Broadhurst, a proponent of the Cape Wind Project and distinguished writer, writes “Cape Wind Is Sound for
It is really surprising that coal burning is still the world leading source for generating power. Coal is acceptable if burnt in small amount, but huge amounts like this would definitely destroy the environment. Projectile of these percentages are predicted to increase in the next years. Reducing CO2 emission was always
There is a quote by President Barack Obama saying, “To truly transform our economy, protect our security, and save our planet from the ravages of climate change, we need to ultimately make clean, renewable energy the profitable kind of energy,” (“151 Inspiring Environmental Quotes”). He believes as many due that nonrenewable resources are harmful to all aspects of life. The energy we use now is harmful to our planet, to humans, and to animals. Scientists are taking steps to making the world a better place. They found sources that replenished naturally in a short amount of time and are less destructive in all aspects.
According to (Islam, Guo and Zhu 2014) in 2014 wind energy output was 280 GW worldwide. This figure is always rising with the EU demanding at least 12% of their electricity demand to be produced by wind energy by 2020 which equates to about 180 GW of power in the EU alone (Power 2016). This leads to both massive investment and growth in the industry but also scrutiny of both the positive and negative environmental impacts that wind energy has. These include the reduction of greenhouse emissions, impact on birds and bats, usage of large areas of land, social and communal implications and the immediate weather effects. The most important of these is the sole reason for the use of wind energy, to reduce greenhouse emissions.
Renewable energy development outperforms fossil fuels (UCSUSA, 2013) in two important ways when it comes to driving job growth, first of all renewable energy development is relatively labour intensive, so it creates more jobs per dollar invested than fossil fuel resources and Installing renewable energy facilities uses primarily local workers, so investment dollars are kept in local communities. Local landowners benefit from renewable energy development. When wind turbines (UCSUSA, 2013) are installed on privately owned land, the land owners typically receive payments in the form of lease, royalty, or right-of-way payments. These payments can be an important source of income for rural
Wind energy is mainly used to generate electricity like earlier wind mills modern wind machines used blades to collect the winds Kinetic energy. 1.1.1 Advantages 1) The blades ere connect to shaft that turn on an electric generator to produce electricity. 2) Use of wind power to produce electricity on commercial scale has become the fastest growing energy technology. 3) Wind energy is comparatively labor exhaustive and as a result creates
Here is a picture of a wind turbine. (Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy., n.d.) For each, describe two benefits. Solar Energy Benefits, The sun already produces enough energy to sustain mankind for
Nowadays, we usually use the newer term called “wind turbine”.1 About four percent of the energy created in the United States comes from wind energy,2 and over 100 countries are now following in this trend and produce energy through the use of wind. This not only shows that a wind energy has great potential in the future, but also how popular it already is. It can be said that the more countries there are that using wind energy the better it is for our world. It is better because wind energy is a sustainable energy source.3 Looking back already at around 1000 AD wind power used and spread around northern Europe, starting with Holland.