Sports - More Wind

In my last article, I wrote about electric generating wind powered turbos and their big propeller blades mounted on towers high enough up to capture the natural breezes. I wrote about the turbo once present near Boone, North Carolina and also about the “ridge law” prohibiting the construction of any object that alters the natural outline of a ridge or mountain top.

Well, we are now faced with these same issues right here in our own back yard. We have an abundance of open spaces to our immediate north containing numerous ridges and mountain tops across which breezes blow almost constantly. So, we are faced with the dilemma of utilizing this natural power source to generate electrical power by building turbo generators or by not doing so and continuing our use and dependence on oil powered plants.

Which will it be?

There are some who would say that wind-powered electric is “snake oil.” Mr. John Droz, Jr., a former General Electric employee and now a real estate developer (in all places, the Adirondacks), said in the May/June issue of the “Adirondack Explorer” that because turbos generate electricity only 30 percent of the time, they are inefficient. He also argues that wind doesn’t always blow when we need it to and therefore, he leans more toward coal and gas-powered plants. And he also argues that even with turbos, the gas and coal powered plants would have to be on standby for when the wind wasn’t blowing hard enough to turn the big blades.

Now, here’s my take. Mr. Droz - 30 percent is better than nothing, particularly when it’s free. Oh, sure there is an initial cost for the turbo generator, but my ole’ buddy Mother Nature supplies the driving force for nothing…as in free. Second, the amount or speed of wind needed to drive the blades is surprisingly low. In fact if I recall correctly, the top speed of the operating wind level was only 16 miles per hour…the top speed. Also, Mr. Droz, I don’t know when you last stood atop some of the mountains in our beloved Adirondacks, but even on a hot summer day, the air rarely, if ever, is at a complete stand still. And even at one mile per hour…it’s free. That’s why so many people vacation in the mountains Mr. Real Estate Developer.

The real and only issue as I see it is the visual aspect of these big white blades turning lazily in our wilderness. I, as many of you know, am a purest. I believe we should preserve the Adirondacks forever. BUT! I am also a pragmatic realist and I know that I must give something to get something. That’s why my wife loves me so much. She knows that I understand this basic human issue.
So, the question is, do we totally protect our mountains and live in the dark, or do we find a balance and utilize what Mother Nature provides?

Here’s some food for thought. One wind driven electric generating turbo in the Canadian facility that I visited can supply all of the electrical needs of the entire town within which it was located having a population of approximately 450 people. ONE! As in…One!

Snake oil or hot air? To those with a questionable agenda, maybe it’s snake oil. After all, even if it’s free, I can see an argument for 30 percent versus something greater. But, because it’s free, I think there is enough hot air coming from those who resist it to increase that 30 percent to a much higher level, like maybe the 80 percent level of smoke and gas and acid rain producing coal and gas driven plants.

Oh! One last fact for you to consider: General Electric manufactures coal and gas driven power plant turbo engines. The wind driven variety are made primarily in Europe, not by G.E.
See you outdoors!

Dick Totino can be reached at rtotino@nycap.rr.com