Wind Energy
Societies have taken advantage of wind power for thousands of years. The first known use was in 5000
BC when people used sails to navigate the Nile River . Persians had already been using windmills for 400
years by 900 AD in order to pump water and grind grain. Windmills may have even been developed in
China before 1 AD, but the earliest written documentation comes from 1219. Cretans were using
"literally hundreds of sail-rotor windmills [to] pump water for crops and livestock."
The Windmill
The Dutch were responsible for many refinements of the windmill, primarily for pumping excess water
off land that was flooded. As early as 1390, they had connected the mill to "a multi-story tower, with
separate floors devoted to grinding grain, removing chaff, storing grain, and (on the bottom) living
quarters for the windsmith and his family." Its popularity spread to the point that there were 10,000
windmills in England. By then, applications ranged from saw-milling timber to processing spices,
tobacco, cocoa, paints, and dyes. But perfecting the windmill's efficiency to the point that it "had all the
major features recognized by modern designers as being crucial to the performance of modern wind
turbine blades" took almost 500 years.
The windmill was further refined in the late 19th century in the US; some designs from that period are
still in use today. Heavy, inefficient wooden blades were replaced by lighter, faster steel blades around
1870. Over the next century, more than six million small windmills were erected in the US in order to aid
in watering livestock and supplying homes with water during the development of the West. The first
large windmill to produce electricity was the "American multi-blade design," built in 1888. Its 12kilowatt capabilities were later superceded by modern 70-100 kilowatt wind turbines.
Wind Energy Sources
Today, people are realizing that wind power "is one of the most promising new energy sources" that can
serve as an alternative to fossil fuel-generated electricity. With today's technology, wind energy could
provide 20% of America's electricity (or about the amount nuclear power provides) with turbines
installed on less than 1% of its land area. And within that area, less than 5% of the land would be
occupied by wind equipment-the remaining 95% could continue to be used for farming or ranching. By
the year 2020, 10 million average American homes may be supplied by wind power, preventing 100
million metric tons of CO2 emissions every year. Lessening our dependence on fossil fuels is critical to
the health of all living things, and wind energy can do just that. The 3 billion kWh of electricity produced
by America's wind machines annually displace the energy equivalent of 6.4 million barrels of oil and
avoid 1.67 million tons of carbon emissions, as well as sulfur and nitrogen oxide emissions that cause
smog and acid rain. In other words, "more wind power means less smog, acid rain, and greenhouse gas
emissions."
Electricity from wind
Germany, the US, Spain, Denmark, India and Australia are among the world's leading nations in the
acquisition of wind energy. Wind generated energy is growing in leaps and bounds. Wind power is now
the world's fastest growing energy source and has also become one of the most rapidly expanding
industries, with sales of roughly $3 billion in 2008. Major offshore developments are likely in northern
European waters in the early part of the next century. This will be the next major step for this
technology and will result in a dramatic increase in decentralized electricity generation. Offshore wind
has the potential to deliver substantial quantities of energy at a price that is cheaper than most of the
other renewable energies, as wind speeds are generally higher offshore than on land. The success of this
energy is in part due to the fact that its costs have gone "down by more than 80% since the early 1980s."
Even lower prices are expected, as "industry analysts see the cost dropping by an additional 20 percent
to 40 percent.
According to an April 1999 press release, "Worldwide, wind energy capacity has expanded at an annual
rate of 25.7% during the 1990s, with the total doubling every three years and the cost of production
declining steadily as each doubling occurs and economies of greater volume are realized." Christophe
Bourillon, executive director of the European Wind Energy Association, remarked that Europe has
emerged "as a world leader in wind energy development" in the 1990s, which he expects this to
continue. As far as the wind industry in the US is concerned, June of 1999 signaled the end of the best
year yet. The executive director of the American Wind Energy Association attributes this "wind rush" to
"progressive state policies and growing consumer demand for 'green' (low-environmental-impact)
power." Many states now require that part of their energy production come from renewable sources.
And utilities are now offering people "the choice of buying green power at a premium over power from
conventional, environmentally-damaging sources such as fossil fuels. In most cases, wind, as one of the
lowest-cost renewable energy sources, is the primary beneficiary." Utilities as well as policymakers are
continuously surprised by the public's positive response to the availability of this green power.
Bird fatalities on wind farms are a concern. A study in the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area in
California found 182 dead birds, 119 of which were raptors. In response to this, the wind industry is
committed to modifying the equipment in order to make the area safer for birds. Ideas include reducing
the number of perches on turbines, spacing turbines far apart and in the direction of migration, painting
patterns on blades that contrast with landscape colors, and even broadcasting a radio frequency to keep
birds away altogether. Amidst its efforts to take responsibility in this issue, the industry quietly points
out how many millions of species are killed annually during the acquisition and distribution of most
conventional sources of energy.
Overall, the advantages of wind power heavily outweigh the disadvantages. Although it can only
supplement other sources of energy for now, it provides skilled jobs for people in rural communities,
replaces environmentally harmful energy sources, and is inexhaustible." It will never be subject to
embargoes or 'price shocks' caused by international conflicts," and "unlike oil fields, wind energy is
renewable, year after year, forever."