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Offshore wind farms are a bad idea 

Credit:  Journal Sentinel, www.jsonline.com 24 April 2012 ~~

An editorial in the April 22 Journal Sentinel discusses offshore wind generators (“Offshore wind farms have great potential for states,” Our View, Crossroads).

This is not a new idea; about 40 years ago, a professor at the University of Massachusetts made a similar proposal. Representatives from Wisconsin Electric met with the professor to explore the concept. Among problems considered was how to maintain the machines in Lake Michigan in the winter.

The same editorial mentions a 500-megawatt wind farm. Can you imagine over 200 such machines off the beaches? No way. Placing the generators out of sight not only makes them more expensive and difficult to maintain; it also creates a significant hazard to shipping.

The editorial asks, “What’s not to like about this?” Well, besides the visual pollution, there is a matter of cost, reliability and availability. Electricity from wind generators is more expensive than more traditional producers; that’s one reason Wisconsin ratepayers are paying above average rates, as stated in the Business section of the April 22 Journal Sentinel (“Utilities fight to build power lines”).

Wind does not always blow, which means backup generation also must be built. The fuel (wind) is free, but the electricity is certainly not.

C.W. Fay
Cedarburg

Source:  Journal Sentinel, www.jsonline.com 24 April 2012

This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.

The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.

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