January 9, 2010 Bob Aaron
In a precedent setting move, a recently discovered decision of the provincial Assessment Review Board (ARB) has cut a homeowner’s assessment in half because the house is located near a noisy hydro substation. The hydro plant serves a nearby wind farm producing “clean” electricity.
The decision of ARB member Ana Cristina Marques was issued following an appeal by Paul Thompson of the assessment on his house.
Thompson’s one-storey home is located on the 10th Line in Amaranth Township. It was built in 1989 and sits on a lot with a frontage of 183 feet (55.7… Read more
MNR has placed a moratorium on the over 500 plans from wind developers for Lake Ontario at the present time. That’s pretty overwhelming for them, we guess! Ontario does not have setbacks, no master plan to protect species and habitats, no plan for aquatic life management re turbines in the Lake, and we can only surmise why Toronto Hydro has begun its plan to industrialize the northern shore of the Lake without any precautions.
But here is the footprint that Toronto Hydro is using in its lease of Crown land on the lake bed for its massive plan to put… Read more
K. de Groot & C. le Pair
(Former Shell & STW, The Netherlands.)
kenjdegroot@mac.com
clepair@casema.nl
Summary
Wind generated electricity requires back-up capacity of conventional power stations. This capacity is required to deliver electricity to consumers when wind supply is falling short. To have the non-wind power stations ramp up or down to compensate for the stochastic wind variations causes extra efficiency loss for such power stations. How much efficiency is lost in this way and how much extra fuel is required for this extra balancing of supply and demand is unknown. In this article… Read more
Among others, a controversy affects a project to implant 130 wind turbines on a shoal in the Nantucket Sound opposite Cape Cod. The area is biologically important for sea creatures, and protected bird species are also at risk. The wind turbines will be erected along a major migration flyway, and may kill an estimated 6,600 birds a year. – Yet the local bird society MA Audubon supports the project.
November 23, 2009
By Carmen Krogh
A snapshot
- From Health Canada: ‘.there are peer reviewed scientific articles indicating that wind turbines may have an adverse impact on human health.’[1]
- Not every one gets sick. However, from a population stand point, those at risk include: healthy people; people with pre-existing health problems.[2]
- Those with the following pre-existing medical conditions could be affected: migraine syndrome and inner ear problems where the balance can be affected by moving blades, the… Read more
Wind power is the fastest growing source of electricity in the world, and is expected by many to become the leading energy alternative to fossil fuels. As part of its efforts to meet Canada’s Kyoto committment for the reduction of greenhouse gases (GHGs), the Federal governement is strongly promoting alternative and renewable energies, chiefly wind power.
Probably the most common wind energy question that I receive from analysts, reporters, and interested citizens deals with the cost of electricity from wind. The frequency of the question is understandable since estimates provided by the wind industry, federal and state agencies and contractors, and the media understate the true cost and ignore the fact that electricity from wind is very low in value.
European wind developers are fleeing the EU’s expiring wind subsidies, shuttering factories, laying off workers, and leaving billions of Euros of sovereign debt and a continent-wide financial crisis in their wake. But their game is not over. Already they are tapping a new vein of lucre from the taxpayers and ratepayers of the United States.
By Robert E. Aliasso Jr. and Tom Bishop
On Earth Day 2009, New York Power Authority (NYPA) President Richie Kessel unveiled plans to industrialize Lake Ontario and Lake Erie with near shore wind turbines clustered in 120MW to 500MW arrays in waters 150 feet deep, or less.
Some arrays would consist of 500 turbines towering 450’from the lake levels. NYPAs proposal was unveiled without input from the shoreline communities or businesses that will be the victims. Currently, Jefferson, Oswego, Cayuga and Wayne Counties are working towards unilateral opposition to this NYPA project in Lake Ontario.
The reasons of objection… Read more
Industry investigates design error as offshore turbines hit by ‘conditions’
By Sarah Arnott
Monday, 12 April 2010
Hundreds of offshore wind farms are being checked for a construction fault after a flaw was discovered in one of the Europe-wide industry standards.
The problem that has emerged is over the turbines’ “monopile” foundations. The issue is centred on the grouting in the transition piece linking the turbine to its foundation, and the towers that are affected have shifted several centimetres under the impact of harsh offshore conditions.
The fault is not associated with a particular turbine model or manufacturer. Rather,… Read more