Wind Turbines…
First, I’m going to come clean. I love wind turbines! I think they are elegant pieces of engineering and they are certainly not a blot on the landscape. Obviously, aesthetics are subjective, and I don’t want beautiful scenery to be visually destroyed, but I don’t believe that wind farms do this and certainly not in comparison to coal, gas or nuclear power generation developments! Anyone with doubts should visit a wind turbine such as the Ecotech Centre at Swaffham, Norfolk, where you can get up close and even climb the turbine to a viewing platform.
Its true that wind alone can’t meet our energy needs, but it is part of the wider renewable energy package (Its worth noting that tidal or wave power, which some would consider visually less intrusive, that there are still plenty of concerns regarding impacts on the marine environment) that can and will need to meet our needs, once the fossil fuels become so rare as to be too expensive for everyday use. Fossil fuels might be cheap and plentiful at present, but relying on those seems pretty close to sticking our head in the sand and hoping the problem goes away.
Wind turbine technology on a commercial scale still needs further development, and at times there does seem to be a rush to get as many wind turbines erected as possible, but it is this rush that will pull the technology forward and allow it to develop.
As for the impact of wind turbines on birds, a report published very recently by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and the British Trust for Ornithologists, found that the impact on birds was far less that previously thought, with some bird species numbers actually increasing within the vicinity of wind farms. This report didn’t take account of raptors, and there are certainly still concerns in this area. However, considering my own love of raptors, I know that extensive surveys are carried out before wind farms or turbines can be approved, in order to make sure that any impacts upon raptors or other birds is as minimal as possible. Its also worth noting that the RSPB, who one would think have birds best interests at their core, are supporters of wind turbine technology in general.
And as far as global warming and wind turbines are concerned, there are so many numbers and statistics going around that its difficult to sort the truth from the spin. But whether man is responsible for the current rise in global temperatures or not, can anyone reasonably say that pumping or dumping all of the waste into the atmosphere or the environment as a whole that we do, is a good thing? If it is a natural rise in global temperatures, how can we be certain that they will be able to naturally reduce again considering how much crap we have pumped into the atmosphere? As a species are we really that arrogant and naive to think we aren’t effecting the environment around us?
Cheers,
James