[Moon-dæg] Winding up for Wind Power

Introduction
Megawhats?
Causes for Concern
More Information
Closing

{Typical turbines. Image from publicdomanpictures.net, taken by Peter Kratochvil}

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Introduction

As the first part in the next four part series here at A Glass Darkly, and since the new moon means a lack of light, this entry is a pooling of information about wind farms - specifically in Ontario. However, it is by no means complete and will point to things that are a little more complete when necessary.

So what's the skinny on these three-armed towers cropping up over the countryside in recent years? In short, they're part of the Liberal party's plan to help Ontario to go green. The cost has turned many off of the idea, and the noise that they are reported to cause has turned off a few more.

However, according to the IESO website's tracker, this is how much energy Ontario's turbines are currently outputting:


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Megawhats?

A megawatt is 1 million watts, and according to WikiAnswers, one megawatt could power 1000 average American homes for 1 hour. Or, it could power an average home for 1000 hours. Since Americans and Canadians have roughly the same power consumption habits (multiple computers, TVs, charging devices like phones and iPods, and electronic kitchen and cleaning implements) using American statistics doesn't seem particularly off.

An estimate of 750 homes on the megawatt by the Toronto Star, gives a similar picture.

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Causes for Concern

What gets people's dander up about wind farms, though, is that they've come in at tremendous cost. Whereas other generators get about 7.4 cents on the kilowatt hour, wind generators get 12 cents.

As Ontario swings into more wind power generation, though, A.J. Goulding of the consulting firm London Economics believes that there's potential for a vicious cycle in which the burgeoning wind industry would create jobs that would only compensate for those lost in other energy sectors.

Among those on the ground, so to speak, there are also concerns that wind turbines are responsible for headaches, dizziness, sleep disturbance, and/or hearing loss. Though these concerns are addressed in a report issued by the Chief Medical Officer of Health of Ontario, the conclusion appears to be that wind turbines are not responsible for adverse health effects from a strictly scientific standpoint.

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More Information

Nonetheless, the groups for and against wind power in Ontario dot the province's landscape as much as the mills that are the cause of their reactions. These include Wind Concerns Bruce, Ontario Wind Resistance, Harvesting Wind Support, and Ontario Highlands Friends of Wind Power.

For more stats check out thewindpower.net, canwea.ca, and/or centreforenergy.com.

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Closing

Check back here Wednesday for an entry on some of the newest news and on Friday for the search for the good in Clash of the Titans.

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