We drove past a field of windmills in eastern New York on our way to Vermont. It was a HUGE field. The windmills were gigantic, towering, and white.
Can you imagine a day the windmills stop the wind?
I can.
The environment and sources of energy are one of those things that raise my blood pressure without me asking. It’s a natural reaction.
There is no infinite source of energy. Some day, the sun will burn out.
What gets me is the human desire to capture and use energy without thinking of the environmental impacts.
Windmills don’t have no impact on the environment. But whenever I bring this topic up with friends, they just look at me like I’m crazy.
I think, “Yeah, and people used to think the ocean was infinitely large. Throwing trash in it will never make a dent. Right?”
My Pop was born in 1898. He used to say, “Deer PARK, that’s good water!” He was mocking the TV commercial and how ridiculous the idea of bottled water was. He’d belly laugh, and say, “Andy, one of these days, they’ll be bottling and selling air.
If he only knew.
So you think the wind is infinite? Like the ocean?
I don’t.
Just for starters: what impact does a massive wind farm have on wind speed at turbine height versus the air above and below? I imagine an enormous shear force is being created, with ripple effects on weather patterns downwind.
If a butterfly flapping its wings in Brazil can cause a hurricane in Texas, what can a field of windmills do?
Electricity, whether captured from the sun, wind, or rushing rivers, is not free. It’s not inherently better than electricity generated from coal or uranium.
There’s an incredible environmental cost of making solar panels, turbines, and batteries.
Clean energy is not clean. Some forms may be cleaner than others. But, how clean? I don’t think we know.
In my humble opinion, replacing farms with solar fields and windmills is not the answer.
Thank you for reading #DiMeo_Unfiltered
Health, happiness, kindness, respect
for every being and all things.
(Originally published on Medium)
— Andrew
