Wind Energy – Setting Sail for The Future – wind energy

[tag-tec]Wind energy[/tag-tec] is one of the oldest forms of non-animal generated power used by human beings; in its simplest form, it’s used as a sail for a sailboat. In the Renaissance, wind power was harnessed for more commercial applications by the use of wind mills to grind grain, and in the Netherlands, to run the pumps that keep the Zeuder Zee from flooding. Wind energy is getting a lot more attention now, concerns about the environmental impact of fossil fuels comes to public awareness, with concerns about global warming from CO2 emissions and nitrous oxide and sulfur emissions from coal. Furthermore, the global consensus is that we’re at the point where fossil fuel prices are going to rise. While we’re several centuries away from using our current coal and oil reserves, as the cost of extraction rises, the costs of energy will also rise.

As the costs of fossil [tag]fuel [/tag]prices rises, the break even point for alternative energy sources such as wind and hydroelectric power make more economic sense. Furthermore, the environmental impact of wind energy is significantly less than the environmental impact of a coal or oil plant, and once the initial investment is paid out; there are no ongoing fuel costs to concern one with.

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The best economic argument for a [tag-ice]wind energy[/tag-ice] collection facility is that it’s a high up front cost, but lower average annual costs over its expected lifespan; in much the same way that it’s best to pay a larger down payment to reduce your mortgage fees, the same logic applies to utility companies considering renewable resources.

From the consumer perspective, the best argument for using wind energy is that it’s renewable. Nobody has to go to war to harness the wind, and it’s not going to run out anytime soon. Secondarily, wind energy is zero emissions � no carbon dioxide or nitrous oxides are released into the atmosphere; this is an important factor as concerns about global warming rise. Most utility companies with wind energy plants give you an option to take a certain percentage of your electric bill from wind energy for a premium price; this is sound ecological sense for most households.

The principal downfall to wind energy is that it only works where there’s [tag]wind [/tag]blowing. Unlike a hydroelectric plant, you can’t always rely on the wind blowing from the same direction with the same intensity, day in, day out. So it requires that the turbines be placed in an area where there’s reliable high wind, which usually means wide open plains or up on mountain tops, neither of which are convenient for wind energy in urban areas. This also encourages storage of power generated by wind energy for later use, allowing a store-and-release model that relies on better power storage densities.

Craig Ritsema

For more information on wind energy resources visit http://www.energyresourcesnet.com/ or our Energy Blog.

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