Renewable Energy - The Power of Wind

By: Matthew Hick

The power of wind can be used to provide energy for people across the world, no matter where they live.

You see a sailboat gliding across the ocean pushed by its harmless wafts, you get some relief on a hot day from it's gentle breeze and a pinwheel starts spinning to a youngsters delight from it's puff of air. There are also cases of umbrellas being turned inside out, shingles being blown off rooftops and tornados causing ruins from its strong gusts. By using it to our advantage, we can turn it into a renewable source of energy, which will not cause pollution and will produce a clean energy alternative to harmful fossil fuels.

Wind energy has existed through time. Ancient peoples used it for sailing ships, grinding wheat and pumping water. Today, wind energy is the world's fastest-growing energy source and we are able to use it to produce electricity. This source of energy is a renewable resource that became popular during the oil crisis of the 70's.

Wind energy is captured through the use of wind turbine machines. There are two types that are available. The horizontal axis machine consists of propellers with three blades. It is usually around 20 stories tall and 200 feet wide. The vertical axis machine consists of blades that go from bottom to top. They are 100 feet tall and 50 feet wide. Propellers on wind turbines are large so as to capture a great volume of air. They can be angled or turned to face the wind for maximum effect.

The machines work by using the blades to hold the wind's kinetic energy. The wind turns the blade. The blade is connected to a drive shaft that turns a generator to produce electricity. Wind turbines need wind speeds over 12 miles/hour to be successful. When winds get too high the turbines are able to keep the blades from being damaged and turning too fast through the use of a brake.

Wind power plants consist of about a dozen wind turbines machines and are called wind farms. These farms are owned and operated by businessmen known as Independent Power Producers. The electricity produced on a wind farm is collected and transmitted through long distance high power lines. It is important to locate these farms in ideal areas where the most wind can be captured. This is why you will find them located in high altitudes and open areas such as hilltops, open plains and shorelines.

The advantages to wind power are many. It is a clean form of energy that is non-polluting and does not produce global warming effects. Although large, it allows for land use under the wind turbines for farming. Some disadvantages are it can have a damaging effect on the wild bird population. Also, some people consider them eyesores.

As new technologies emerge, wind power will become a more cost effective source of energy. The government currently issues tax credits for its use and there are green pricing programs available. There is also a renewed concern for the environmental damage that the uses of fossil fuels create. As we search for an alternative to fossil fuels, the answer to our energy problems may just be blowing in the wind.

Wind power- a viable alternative to Energy needs

Author: Warren Peters

Although it is much less expensive to initially get hooked into the local electric company's grid than it is to set up and hook into wind turbines, in the long run one saves money by utilizing the wind for one's energy needs while also becoming more independent. Not receiving an electric bill while enjoying the advantages of the modern electrically-driven lifestyle is a wondrous feeling.

Electric bills and fuel bills are rising steadily but the cost of wind turbine energy is zero, and the cost of installing and hooking up a turbine is steadily coming down as demand rises and more commercial success is realized by various companies producing the turbines and researching technologies to make them ever more efficient.

In addition, people are moving away from the traditional electric grids and the fossil fuels for personal reasons including desire for greater independence, the desire to live remotely or rurally without having to go primitive, political concerns such as fears of terrorist strikes on oil fields or power grids, or concerns about the environment.

Again, this motivation to get away from the traditional energy sources is the same one that causes people to seek the power of the wind for their energy, giving more business opportunities to profit from wind turbine production and maintenance, which drives their costs down for the consumers.

In nearly thirty states at the time of this writing, homeowners who remain on the grid but who still choose to use wind energy (or other alternative forms) are eligible for rebates or tax breaks from the state governments that end up paying for as much as 50% of their total green energy systems costs.

In addition, there are 35 states at the time of this writing where these homeowners are allowed to sell their excess energy back to the power company under what are called net metering laws. The rates that they are being paid by the local power companies for this energy are standard retail rates in other words, the homeowners are actually profiting from their own energy production.

Some federal lawmakers are pushing to get the federal government to mandate these tax breaks and other wind power incentives in all 50 states. Japan and Germany already have national incentive programs in place. However, A lot of this is handled regionally by state law. There wouldn't really be a role for the federal government, the Energy Department's Craig Stevens says.

And as might be imagined, there are power companies who feel that it's unfair that they should have to pay retail rates to private individuals. We should [only have to] pay you the wholesale rate for ... your electricity, according to Bruce Bowen, Pacific Gas & Electric's director of regulatory policy.

However, the companies seem to be more worried about losing short term profits than about the benefits, especially in the long run, of the increased use of wind turbines or wind farms. Head of the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies of California V. John White points out, It's quality power that strengthens the grid.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/environment-articles/wind-power-as-a-viable-solution-to-alternative-energy-needs-132848.html