by Ken Silverstein – Director, Energy Industry Analysis
Even though wind power is facing challenges on a few new projects, the industry is still working to establish itself as a cornerstone of global energy policy.
Successful projects could cut the level of pollutants that are released into the atmosphere. But, the nascent technology has been battered lately by determined opponents armed with new studies who argue that wind power is adversely effecting wildlife and the environment as well as adding costs to consumers’ bills.
What are some of the issues?
Thousands of dead bats are turning up in the hills of West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Maryland and the matter has grabbed the attention of researchers, naturalists and utilities alike. No one knows why this is happening and the issue is likely to affect a host of new wind developments that have long been in the works;
The head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for New England has written to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that its draft proposal essentially giving the go-ahead to an off-shore wind project to be located in Cape Cod is “inadequate.” It says that the Corps must look into matters involving the effects on bird populations as well as other potential locations in the water where the wind turbines would be placed and,
A new study in Germany says that it will cost billions to link wind farms to the national grid. That’s something it has to do if the country is reach its goal of producing 20 percent of its power from renewable sources. At the same time, the report goes on to say that Germany could save money and cut carbon dioxide emissions thought to cause global warming if it forced coal generators to install modern technologies.
These events are happening just as wind power’s fortune has brightened because of rising natural gas prices as well as the re-enactment of production tax credits in the United States. The American Wind Energy Association says that in 2004 the industry provided 17 billion kilowatt hours, which is less than 1 percent of the nation’s energy mix. But, with favorable treatment, 2005 is set to be a banner year and contribute 2,500 megawatts of power?if the industry successfully faces the issues before it.
Wind power has become an attractive alternative to coal and natural gas, particularly in the mountainous East. But researchers at the University of Maryland estimate that as many as 4,000 bats were killed by flying into the wind turbines in 2004. To date, they don’t have definitive conclusions as to why this is happening?a dynamic that prompted many groups to demand that developers slow up until they have more answers.
So far, the best explanations are either that the bats are attracted to the spinning blades or that the sonar systems that guide them in the night can’t detect the turbines. It’s similar to the deadly situation that wind developers faced in California when large numbers of birds were dying as result of spinning turbines. Now, though, developers there have cut into that destruction by using better blades and picking better spots to locate them.
Bats do have their place in the order of life: They eat insects that destroy crops. They also devour pests such as mosquitoes that can spread disease. None of the types of bats that are dying are endangered.
Some environmental groups have pounced on the issue. The Citizens for Responsible Wind Power, for example, has petitioned the West Virginia Public Service Commission and called for a moratorium on such development until more is known. Other green groups are siding with the wind industry and say that the deaths do not outweigh the environmental benefits of cleaner air and water.
The West Virginia PUC takes the view that its charter is to responsibly site power generation and as such, it states that “a blanket moratorium” on all wind plants is unwise. Such a position would paint all wind projects as “contrary to the public interest before all the facts are known,” it says.
Meantime, regulators in New England seemed to have been paving the way for an off-shore wind farm to be built off the coast of Cape Cod in Nantucket Sound?one that would supply the equivalent of three-quarters of the residents there with power fueled by wind. But, the regional head of EPA there wrote to the Army Corps of Engineers and recommended it go back to the drawing board. The view, expressed as part of the comment period that just ended, is “advisory” and does not have any legal implications.
Still, the letter has energized opponents of the off-shore project that include Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy. Lawsuits such as those intended by the Massachusetts’ attorney general’s office are ready to go if the Corps. ignores EPA’s views and gives the project the official go-ahead that had been expected sometime over the summer. The project, which would be comprised of 130 turbines that are 420 feet high, could now be delayed for months or years?if not permanently.
The Corps must sift through a total of 4,200 comments and has said it is too early to determine if more study must be done. While the New England office of the EPA says that critical information is missing, the project’s developer disagrees and notes that the facts point to a different conclusion. So far, 17 different federal and state agencies have been working with the Corps over a three-year time period.
And, finally, it’s uncertain what long-term effect the study performed by the German Energy Agency will have on future wind development. That review criticizes the cost of wind power and says that the money would be better spent modernizing coal-fired plants. Formidable Arguments Wind power opponents have jumped on the German government-financed study, saying that taxpayers in all countries are generally subsidizing these efforts. The examination is likely to have its largest ripple effect among the European countries that have adapted renewable portfolio standards.
Already, in the United Kingdom that has its sights set on developing 10 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2010, critics are expressing their views. The “Country Guardian” there says that green electricity will cost consumers there up to three times more than what they currently pay.
Government officials in the U.K. disagree about the added costs. They say that their studies indicate that prices will rise 0.5 percent a year and total about 5 percent more by 2010. Such a small price, they add, brings tremendous benefits: A reduction of between 10 million and 17 million tons of carbon dioxide as well as a diversified fuel portfolio.
Although growth prospects look promising, wind power developers will have to face challenges in getting projects approved. Proponents’ criticism ranges from the death of important wildlife to the destruction of scenic views to the high cost of equipping the local infrastructure to carry the power. But new technologies along with sheer perseverance could result in favorable decisions for wind power. And wind power developers could continue toward their goal of reducing the effect of global warming and bringing energy security to their nations.
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