Is Wind Power Really As Green As They Describe It - Essay Example

How green is wind power How Green is Wind Power? Introduction Energy needs are constantly on the rise as a result of the improving economic conditions and lifestyles around the world. The rising populations in the developing and the underdeveloped countries are also contributing to this increased demand for energy. This growing demand was being met mostly by the traditional sources of energy viz., fossil fuels and nuclear power and to some extent by hydropower. These traditional sources have been encountering serious opposition on account of several factors, most important of which are their detrimental impact on the natural environment and non-sustainability in the long run. Search for sustainable alternative sources of energy for development on a commercial scale has thrown up several options like the wind power, solar power, geothermal, tidal wave etc. and among these, wind power (and solar power) is coming to the forefront in view of its long history of development and scalability. However, there are distracters, mainly from the traditional fuel suppliers, who find fault with the environmental credentials of windmills. These misgivings are ill-founded and it is quite clear from its growing popularity and rapid technological strides of the industry, that wind power is a sustainable and commercially viable option, which has minimal adverse impact on the environment in comparison with nuclear or fossil fuel power. Energy scenario and wind power The current total global energy demand per year, put at 400 x 1015 British Thermal Units (400 quadrillion BTU or approximately 117.2 million GWh), of which 41%, 24% and 22% are the respective shares of oil, coal and natural gas; the share of How green is wind power 2 hydropower and other non-conventional energy sources is just about 13% (US Department of Energy, as quoted by McLamb, 2010). According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), electricity production has risen by about 250% over a 30 year period and this growth has far outstripped the growth of production of coal and natural gas, and was facilitated by vast investments in nuclear power plants, especially in the 1970s and 1980s (World Energy Statistics Manual, IEA, 2005, p.46). IEA points out that during this period, the ‘share of oil decreased from 25 to 8% while the share of nuclear increased from 3 to 17%’ (ibid). Thus while the total energy demand has been rapidly rising and would continue to do so in the foreseeable future, dependence on nuclear power is also increasing. The reasons for increased dependence on nuclear power are not far to seek – firstly, a realization that fossil fuels are not an inexhaustible commodity and secondly, the demand can not be met by any alternative sources in quick time. Both reasons are negative in character and do not offer sufficient justification for the enhanced use of nuclear power in the face of the serious environmental issues of such usage. It is in this scenario that wind power is gaining importance as can be seen by the developments in several leading industrial countries of the world. Denise Bode, CEO of American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) is of the opinion that the US government must promote a national Renewable Electricity Standard which would enforce the utility companies to generate 25 percent of their electricity from renewable energy sources by 2025 and felt that this move would help businesses to invest heavily in clean energy facilities that would also help to create new jobs in America (AWEA Annual wind energy report, April 13, 2009). The annual report goes on to point How green is wind power 3 out the rapid growth of wind power in states like Texas, Iowa, Minnesota and Indiana, reaching 7% of the total energy produced in some states. But the growth is not confined to the US alone. Several European countries including Germany, Spain and Denmark and other countries like China, Brazil and India are also on target to exploit wind power increasingly. Alcorn states that, “Notwithstanding a lack of government support, across the world the (wind energy) industry has grown at an average rate of 29% over the past 10 years, concentrated in California in the US, Spain, Germany, Denmark and several other European countries”…and in comparison, the “global nuclear energy industry has grown by just 1.7%” over the same period (Alcorn, greenleft.org, 2006). The Guardian reported that, “Since 2005, the countrys (China) wind generation capacity has increased by more than 100% a year. The governments renewable energy policy aims to procure 15% of the countrys energy from non-carbon sources by 2020, twice the proportion of 2005… In India and Brazil, investment in the industry is surging. These three countries share of new wind financing in the world rose from 12% to 22% between 2004 and 2007” (Watts, J., The Guardian, July 25, 2008). These positive developments point to the worldwide recognition of wind energy as a sustainable option to meet at least a part of the growing energy demand. Full-cycle environmental impact Energy is most fundamental to all economic activities – from agriculture to manufacturing and services. Economic activities impact the environment in varying degrees and the efficiency with which energy is sourced determines if that source is ‘green’ enough or not. The term green signifies nil or minimum environmental How green is wind power 4 damage, sustainability and scalability. Any source of energy must be evaluated for its environmental impact over the full cycle of its extraction to utilization and disposal. Fossil fuels represented by coal, oil and natural gas are to be extracted from their sources beneath the ground or offshore. In a similar fashion, the main raw material for nuclear power stations viz., Uranium also has to be mined and processed. These mining operations, whether in deep underground mines or in shallow opencast mines, are characterized by clearing of forests, cutting and digging of vast land areas, construction of processing plants, and long distance transportation over road, rail and sea. Each of these operations results in significant destruction of the natural environment and ecology of the effected areas. In addition, transportation always involves expending energy, leaks and spillages, and occasional accidents resulting in major environmental disasters. The latest blowout of the oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico is a case in point. In other words even before the fossil fuel or nuclear fuel is put to generate power, a significant damage to the environment occurs. When these traditional energy sources are burnt to generate power through steam turbines or gas turbines, the residues are to be necessarily let out into the atmosphere as exhaust gases or and into the land/water streams as effluents. The atmospheric emissions consisting mainly of oxides of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, volatile compounds and water vapor accumulate as greenhouse gases and disturb the natural balance of the atmosphere that protects the earth from the harmful effects of solar radiation. Greenhouse gas accumulation leads to depletion of the ozone layer apart from adding to the global warming. The attendant consequences of global warming like climate change, inundation How green is wind power 5 of vast coastal areas, floods and drought have been duly highlighted in international forums. Thus the use of fossil fuels for generating power is a major cause for environmental damage. Coming to nuclear power for which radioactive elements like uranium and plutonium are the fuel rod elements, the environmental damage caused by the production and processing of these elements is further compounded by two major factors viz., safety of operations and disposal of the nuclear waste. Nuclear power plants have a doubtful record of guaranteed safety. The Chalk River plant accident in Canada (1952), the Three Mile Island disaster in the US (1979) or the Chernobyl disaster in the then USSR (1986) are just three examples of several major and minor incidents of serious environmental impact that belie the technological progress of safety standards of such plants. To add to these concerns, the radioactive waste such as spent fuel rods, contaminated heavy water, and the dismantled plant & equipment after its useful life etc. have to be most systematically accounted for, packed, handled and buried deep under the sea or in designated areas for thousands of years. The reliance on human efficiency and systems in this regard is immense and any lapse is a potential source of serious environmental and life threatening hazard. Fortunately, in the case of wind power, no raw materials are needed and there are no exhaust gases or effluents. Consumables like lubricants or greases are also required minimally. Operation and maintenance of wind mills is also significantly simple, thus obviating spending of high resources that might indirectly have an environmental impact. Wind mills are to be set up only in suitable locations, eliminating the need for regular How green is wind power 6 long distance transportation of any kind. Thus the life time environmental impact of wind power equipment is limited to the energy consumed in its manufacture, and in dismantling/recycling/disposal of the equipment after its useful life. Other environmental objections to wind power The arguments against wind power rest on factors such as noise pollution, land use, nuisance to residential colonies from high lighting, interference with electronic and communication signals, risk to wildlife/birds, etc. AWEA has bought out a comprehensive publication dealing with each of these objections to wind power and dispels many myths in this regard as given out below (Wind power: Myths vs. facts, AWEA.org): Modern day wind turbines are efficiently designed to limit noise level to about 50 decibels, which at a distance of 750 to 1000 ft. from the farm is completely tolerable and compares well with the sounds produced by much of the modern day equipment. Higher capacity wind mills with taller masts are permitting lesser number of units in a give area and the land itself is free for other use (as possible) except for the small bases of the masts. Wind farms are developing lighting standards in association with the Federal Aviation Authority both for air travel safety and acceptability; residential areas around the wind farms can avoid signal interference by suitable reorientation of transmitters and receivers; the incidents of birds’ death are significantly much less than feared or caused by other factors such as cats or high tension wires etc. and that AWEA is also working with federal agencies like the US Fish and Wildlife Service to further reduce such incidences. How green is wind power 7 Cost comparison Conventionally, hydropower has been the cheapest and nuclear power the most expensive sources of energy. Renewable sources such as wind and solar power systems are more expensive at the capital investment stage. However, once the life time operational costs are taken into account, wind power at 5 cents per kWh compares well with the conventional sources, according to AWEA (ibid) and DuToit (ezinearticles.com, 2007). Wind turbines of up to 5 MW capacities, with 126 diameter blades and mounted on over 100 m high masts are under development and offer a substantially more economical option when compared to nuclear energy, as per Alcorn (Wind vs. nuclear energy, 2006). These developments are also helping to greatly increase the number of suitable locations where windmills can operate and produce power over a larger number of days in an year. Conclusion The environmental credentials of wind power are unquestionable as are the other techno-economic factors when evaluating the various sources of energy. It is a perennial source of energy with negligible impact on the environment. Technological developments are permitting larger capacity farms, accelerating the industry growth to meet a significant share of the energy demands. Considered over the life cycle, economies of operation of windmills are much superior to fossil fuel plants or nuclear power plants. It is for these reasons that many developed and developing economies around the world are promoting wind energy through policy initiatives. How green is wind power 8 References Alcorn, Z. (2006). Wind vs. nuclear energy? No competition. Retrieved May 7, 2010 from: http://www.greenleft.org.au/2006/682/7930 AWEA (2009). Annual wind energy report. Retrieved May 5, 2010 from http://www.awea.org/newsroom/releases/Annual_Industry_Rankings_2009_041309.html DuToit, E. (2007, January 7). The advantages of wind energy. Retrieved May 2, 2010, from http://ezinearticles.com/?The advantages of wind energy&id=409197 IEA (2005). World energy statistics manual. Retrieved May 6, 2010 from http://www.iea.org/textbase/nppdf/free/2005/statistics_manual.pdf McLamb, E. (2010) Ecology: Fossils fuels vs. Renewable energy resources: Energys future today. Retrieved May 8, 2010, from http://ecology.com/features/fossilvsrenewable/fossilvsrenewable.html. Watts, J., The Guardian (July 25, 2008). Energy in China: We call it the Three Gorges of the sky. The dam there taps water, we tap Wind. Retrieved from http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jul/25/renewableenergy.alternativeenergy Read More