I live in Dakota Territory, the windiest area in the country, they call it The Saudi Arabia of wind. I work for the local utility designing transmission lines for the uneconomic but feels good wind farms. If you have any good ACCURATE information about the economics of wind generation please share it with me because in 15 years in the industry I haven't seen any. What propaganda have you bought into? The nighttime spring and fall generation appears to be nationwide, but I can't say much about the coasts. Three years in a row the wind generators were at 3%, 4.5% and 11% of capacity at peak load for the year, just when you need them they aren't there.
I am so disappointed. I get challenged on something that I am an EXPERT at, I roll up my sleeves, get ready to rumble, and you cowardly chicken out.
So you calling me out?!:mischievous:
Want to go a couple a rounds, eh?
unch:
Well OK- you're ON!:stirthepot:
ullinghair:
Wind. Nuff said. It's FREE! BUT most grids, like here in VT are restricting it coming back to the grid; grid is overloaded and outdated, so they are turning it away even after erecting lots of mills on otherwise pristine hills. Same in Canada; they're PAYING to get rid of excess power generated and needing to go back to the grid. So what sense is there in THAT?! Who's best interest does that serve?!:confused2:
We NEED alternatives to coal and oil, propane, natural gas. We could have gotten up to speed 40-50 years ago- with cars too, but we ran the fossil fuel highway to the end of the road and crashed. Now no-one wants to see windmills/turbines, whatever. BUT everyone wants cheap, 'green' energy. We can't have it both ways. We should be more focused on cheap photovoltaics to allow more individuals to generate power and either sell it back to the grid or just become independent of the grid altogether.
I was doing solar off peak energy research paid for by the government and utilities back in the later 70's. Read EXPERT. We could have had more impact then, with geothermal, solar storage off peak systems, etc. but the govt. and big business like the oil and utilities bought up the rights and shelved it - even though it worked, so as to crush the competition with the status quo.
Cars- HAH! We could be driving cars that get WAY WAY more MPG, but NO, that wouldn't be good for EXXON and others...
Blah, blah, blah....
Oh, almost forgot- if you don't like wind, why work for the companies designing their stuff? And if you feel that they're '...not there just when YOU need them...' then what exactly are you saying? Where are they? They can't produce when 'we' need them? They turn when the wind blows - can't get much simpler than that?!:confused2: