Wind Power - Incredible Value: Beauty is In The Eye Of The Beholder

A new study by researchers at Stanford University has estimated the global potential for wind power at 80 meters above the ground (the approximate height of today's wind turbines). The researchers used wind-speed measurements taken at 10 meters at 8,000 locations around the world to estimate wind speeds at 80 meters. They concluded that 13 percent of the sites had winds of 6.9 meters per second or faster--strong enough to make wind-based power generation cost-effective. If these locations represent a good sample of the world's land area, the researchers report, there is easily enough potential wind power to meet the world's electricity demands. In 2002, just .3 percent of the world's electricity supply came from wind power.

Wind farms in the mountains. Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. Once you learn what they do they can become very appealing. The noise can be bothersome.

A recent study shows that bird mortality is not a problem. I see them as a sign of ecological consciousness. If I were moving to an area and one community had them and the others did not I would very likely opt for the community that had the wind farms. I immediately thought of a few consciousness raising themes for business such as office building roof tops; tops of Restaurant signs with smaller 10-20 foot high “We support wind power” mini turbines -see recommended small “neighborhood“ turbine production book below

One good book on the subject:

Wind Energy Comes of Age  by Paul Gipe. High price but probably worth it
Wind energy is no longer an alternative source of energy. Improvements in performance, reliability, and cost effectiveness of modern wind turbines support my contention that wind energy has come of age as a commercial technology for generating electricity.

The book debunks the myths that wind energy is land-intensive, that wind turbines are inherently ugly, that wind energy will never make a difference, and that wind energy is unreliable. Wind Energy Comes of Age also documents wind energy's value in reducing air pollution, its positive energy balance, its contribution to meeting residential energy needs, and its effect on employment and tourism. Illustrated with more than 170 original line drawings, photographs, and charts and more than 70 tables. 

Clean air is a must. Optimal is to develop the breathing and keep the air clean and full of negative ions.