FAQ -- About National Wind Watch
What kind of people are against wind power?
The typical opponent learned of a project near his or her home, learned about the huge size and impact of the machines, and did research to find out if the benefits were truly worth it. They found that the negative impacts far outweighed the benefits claimed. They also discovered that the claims made for industrial wind power are greatly exaggerated and often wrong.
Do you prefer mountaintop removal or more coal miners getting killed for our energy?
The impacts of coal mining are obvious. Unfortunately, adding the impacts of industrial wind will not diminish coal mining the least bit.
Are you backed by the coal or nuclear industry?
No. We are not backed by, affiliated with, or funded in any way by these or any other industry or political organizations. National Wind Watch was formed bottom-up by local citizens' groups and individuals with shared concerns about wind power from around the United States. The membership is diverse. We have no desire to extend our activities into other potentially contentious realms.
Are you radical environmentalists who are against electricity?
No. The fact is that wind power does not and can not contribute significantly to our electricity needs.
Do you deny global warming?
Again, no. We recognize, however, that wind power has and will ever have only the most minimal ability to mitigate the human causes of global warming.
Is there any place you support wind power?
As an organization, we do not support industrial wind power in any location. The opinions of individual members, however, vary.
Are you NIMBYs?
No. The NIMBY pejorative is for someone who supports a project in principle but doesn't want it where he or she lives (i.e., "not in my back yard"). It is more correctly applied to the developers of industrial wind facilities.
In principle, we do not support the push for industrial wind power, seeing it as a destructive boondoggle that distracts people from the issues they think they are solving.
Of course, each of us generally directs most of our personal energies to fighting wind power development where we live. We also support the similar struggles of others where they live.
Are you anti-environmentalist?
On the contrary. Though many environmentalists support industrial wind power, believing that it can provide substantial energy and move us away from fossil and/or nuclear fuels, many others believe that the faith in wind power is misplaced and that its negative impacts are downplayed. We consider the construction of giant wind turbines and the necessary expansion of roads and the grid infrastructure to be counter to the interests of the environment, particularly in rural and wild areas.
What environmentalist groups do you consider to be wrong about wind power?
Organizations that most actively promote industrial wind power include Greenpeace, the state Public Interest Research Groups (PIRGs), the Conservation Law Foundation in New England, the Union of Concerned Scientists, and the Earth Policy Institute. Their promotion of industrial wind power is at odds with their concern for the environment.
What do you support?
We support an open and honest debate about our energy use and the costs and benefits of all methods of generation, efficient use, and conservation. We support continuing research and development of new energy sources. We support the protection of rural communities and wild places threatened by fruitless industrial development. Our mission is to provide the information needed for the debate about industrial wind power, particularly that which isn't provided by government agencies or the industry and its supporters.
