4/24/2024 0 Comments Building wind turbine at homeWind power can also lower electricity prices and bring more competition to the market. Wind-generated power comes at a zero fuel cost and zero CO2 cost, unlike most traditional energy sources. This will rise to €22 -27 billion in 2020 and €47-51 billion in 2030. Wind energy makes Europe less dependent on fuel imports at unpredictable prices - in 2012, wind power production in Europe avoided fuel costs of €9.6 billion. The EU accounted for 37.5% of the global wind energy market in 2012. The EU wind energy sector was a net exporter of € 5.7 billion worth of products and services in 2010. Between 20, jobs in wind energy went up by 30% while EU unemployment rose by 9.6%. Yes! Wind energy contributed €32 billion to the EU economy in 2010 and as of 2012, 250,000 people in Europe had a job linked to wind energy - by 2020, the sector will have generated 520,000 jobs.īetween 20 the wind energy sector increased its contribution to GDP by 33%, ever as overall GDP growth slowed. It has been estimated that wind turbines in the US cause the direct deaths of only 0.01-0.02% of all of the birds killed annually by collisions with man-made structures and activities. ![]() Deaths from birds flying into wind turbines represent only a tiny fraction of those caused by other human-related sources such as vehicles and buildings.Ī 2012 study carried out in the UK (Pearce- Higgins et al.) concluded that a large majority of species can co-exist or thrive with wind farms once they are operating (Journal of Applied Ecology).Īccording to the Greening Blue Energy study, “Including both on and offshore facilities, estimated rates of mortality for different bird species range from 0.01 to 23 mortalities per turbine per year” (Drewitt & Langston, 2005). Wind farms are always subject to an Environmental Impact Assessment to ensure that their potential effect on the immediate surroundings, including fauna and flora, are carefully considered before construction is allowed to start. Birdlife recently stated that climate change was the single largest threat to birds and wind and renewables were a clear solution to climate change. The opportunity is there to make a more modern system that meets tomorrow’s energy, social, environmental and economic needs.īig environmental and nature conservation groups like Birdlife, WWF, Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, and Birdlife support wind energy. The investment need for new and refurbished grid infrastructure is about €140 bn up to 2020, according to the European Commission. A European grid might also use more modern cables that lose less electricity in transit. The grid also needs to be better interconnected to improve security of supply and prevent black outs – regardless of the source of energy – and in order to improve competition in the electricity market, which would bring down prices. The grid needs to be expanded so that it can deliver power from where the wind is blowing to where it is needed. For wind, this includes out to sea, and in some remote land areas. where the wind blows most frequently, and where the sun shines the brightest. In order to harness the power of renewable energy, including wind, the grid has to be extended to where the resource is located: i.e. European grids are largely national grids. ![]() It was built around large fossil-fuel burning power stations usually sited near large urban areas. Much of today’s electricity grid was built 40-60 years ago. For example, where warm land and cool sea meet, the difference in temperature creates thermal effects, which causes local sea breezes. The Earth's surface is marked with trees, buildings, lakes, sea, hills and valleys, all of which also influence the wind's direction and speed. Click to see a diagram of how the movement of the Earth affects wind. Instead, the air is pushed to the west in the northern hemisphere and to the east in the southern hemisphere. ![]() As it turns on its axis the air does not travel directly from areas of higher pressure to areas of lower pressure. The wind is also influenced by the movement of the earth. This movement of air is known as the wind. ![]() The air tries to balance out the low and high pressure areas – air particles move from areas of high pressure (cold air) to areas of low pressure (warm air). Warm air rises through the atmosphere, creating low pressure areas. Cold air is therefore heavier and sinks down through the atmosphere, creating high pressure areas. Energy from the sun heats up the atmosphere and the Earth unevenly.Ĭold air contains more air particles than warm air. Air is a mixture of gas, and solid and liquid particles. The Earth is surrounded by the atmosphere, which is made up of air.
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