>> Wind just needs one, effective storage. The lack of it is why >> wind power cannot be counted on as part of peak demand. >> It only made sense when natural gas was expensive. >> > Here in Brazil, Wind is used as part of the electric grid (there is a > country-wide electric grid, only some parts of the Rain Forest are > outside it). It helps save "water" and not consume natural gas when > the wind blows. So, Wind is _not_ one black swam away, it can be used > complementary to other sources of energy.
I remember one study where it was predicted that if (in Germany) 10% if the required electricity is produced by wind, temperatures on land will rise and drop on the sea. To me, that sounds like wind farms on land will deliver not enough energy to power the air conditions we might need. Wind farms on the water will reduce evaporation. No idea how big this impact will be, but if we begin to need desalination plants to provide water for irrigation, wind farms might again lead to less energy instead of more. Furthermore, the currently used designs require massive maintenance. Production of replacement parts is not CO2-neutral. Not by far! Yo, still somewhat better than burning coal. But still surprisingly "dirty". Water is, AFAIR, even worse. The water basins replace plants, which would otherwise convert CO2. Pumped-storage hydroelectricity are often cited as a solution to the storage problem. Apart from the problem mentioned above, they are also inefficient. While a modern pumped-storage hydropower station may yield an efficiency between 70% and 80%, energy transmission from and to the the site also takes a toll. It's estimated that today about 50% of the electrical energy is lost on it's wan from the power plant to the user. Consider that the energy might to be transmitted twice (to the pumped-storage hydropower station and back). Of course, it would make sense to integrate water and wind plants, probably even using the wind turbines to power the pumps directly. But that's a problem with politics, not technology. - Klaus _______________________________________________ http://box535.bluehost.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l_mccmedia.com
