One of the largest ways of creating wind power is through wind turbines. To generate wind power, one needs an apparatus that enables air flow to provide the mechanical power to turn electric generators. Wind turbines acts as an alternative to burning fossil fuels. There are a surplus of wind turbines in this country, they are “renewable, widely distributed, clean, produce no greenhouse gas emissions during operation, consume no water, and use little land.” They are overall extremely sustainable and a wonderful option instead of burning fossil fuels to power generators.
Though wind turbines obviously rely on certain weather conditions, they produce more than enough power for how much they save the environment. A single wind turbine can produce energy for nearly 500 homes. As for cost, “Wind turbines under 100 kilowatts cost roughly $3,000 to $8,000 per kilowatt of capacity. A 10 kilowatt machine (the size needed to power a large home) might have an installed cost of $50,000-$80,000 (or more). Wind turbines have significant economies of scale. Smaller farm or residential scale turbines cost less overall, but are more expensive per kilowatt of energy producing capacity. Oftentimes there are tax and other incentives that can dramatically reduce the cost of a wind project.”
Though this may seem like a hefty financial necessity, the amount of good that these wind turbines are doing for the environment is undoubtedly worth the cost.
You do a great job highlighting the newness of renewable resources such as wind turbines. While proven extremely efficient in the generation of energy, the one time installation to even power a large home costs a significant amount. While the investment long term may pay itself back, the price of wind turbines reflects how recent wind turbines have started to be developed. With more funding and money towards the research and creation of turbines, hopefully the future price will shrink and they will become more widely available.
I thought you did well emphasizing wind turbines as an alternative energy source. Obviously, outside of calm weather, the only prohibitive aspect of wind-generated power is the initial cost. This is especially true given that, as you noted, smaller wind turbines cost less but are less efficient. You get less when you pay less. Hopefully, over time and with more research and development, these barriers will begin to be lifted and wind power can evolve into a true energy alternative.
I looked into wind energy for class the other day and was very interested in it as a renewable energy resource. Yes, wind turbines’s effectiveness depends on the amount of wind there is and therefore it works better in some locations rather than others, but in areas that are able to use it, I think that is represents a very good alternative. The turbines are effective at collecting energy and can be sued to power many different establishments such as small farms or towns.
I’m curious to know where exactly wind turbines are mostly located in the US and the world given their reliance on certain weather. I would imagine more West in America but I’m not entirely sure. I think that wind turbines are a great addition to environmental sustainability rather than an alternative considering how much they rely on weather. It would be cool if there were a wind turbine made out of solar panels.