Did You Know...?

… The U.S. has world-class wind energy resources capable of providing a significant amount of the nation’s electricity.

FACT: Wind energy is poised to be a significant part of America’s diverse energy portfolio.  The U.S. Department of Energy estimates America’s wind energy potential to be much larger than total U.S. electricity consumption today.  Tapping only a fraction of that potential would provide a significant part of America’s electricity supply.  In the U.S., wind energy currently produces over 25,000 MW of electricity, the equivalent of an estimated 73 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh), powering the equivalent of close to 7 million American homes year-round.
With legislation to remove barriers to wind energy development and federal policies that create a nation-wide, long-term commitment to renewable energy production, wind could provide 20 percent of the country’s electricity by 2030.

… Wind turbines are very efficient, with a rapid “energy payback” time.
FACT: Wind turbines are very efficient.  One of the simplest ways to measure overall efficiency is to look at the “energy payback” of an energy technology, or the amount of time it takes to produce the amount of energy required to build the power plant.  The energy payback time for wind is, in fact, similar to or better than that of conventional power plants.

… Wind turbines are reliable and do not require back-up generation.
FACT:  According to many utilities and reliability authorities, wind power can readily be accommodated into electric system operations reliably and economically.  Because of the electric utility system’s inherent design, there is no need to back up every megawatt of wind energy with the equivalent amount of fossil fuel or dispatchable power.  The electric system is designed to have more generation sources than are needed at any one time because no power plant is 100 percent reliable.  Demand for electricity varies throughout the day and year, and system operators turn power plants on and off as needed to match that demand. Using wind adds only a small amount of further variability to the system.
Changes in wind energy output are not instantaneous, as are conventional generator failures.  Because of the geographic diversity inherent with large numbers of wind turbine installations, it typically takes over an hour for even a rapid change in wind speeds to shut down a large amount of wind generation. By contrast, conventional power plants may suffer instantaneous forced outages.  In addition, wind forecasting tools that warn system operators of upcoming wind output variations are becoming widely used and better integrated into system operations.

… Wind energy is surprisingly affordable.
FACT:  Wind power costs are competitive with energy generated by conventional power plants. While the up-front costs of wind energy are more expensive than those of some traditional power technologies, wind uses zero fuel, and therefore saves money continuously once it is installed.

… Wind turbines are not noisy.
FACT:  Well-designed utility scale wind turbines are generally quiet in operation and the sound of their operation is very low compared to that of other common activities: road traffic, trains, aircraft and construction.  An operating modern wind farm at a distance of 750 to 1,000 feet is no louder than a kitchen refrigerator.  Turbines produce a light whooshing or swishing sound. Even in rural or low-density areas (where there is little additional sound to mask that of the turbines), the sound of the blowing wind is often louder.

… Wind turbines are highly compatible with wildlife.
FACT:  Wind, a 100% clean energy source, is one of the healthiest energy options, and one of the most compatible with animals and humans.  Despite the minimal impact wind development has on birds and bats in most areas, the industry takes potential impacts seriously.  Avian studies are routinely conducted at wind sites before projects are proposed.  These pre-construction wildlife surveys are common practice throughout the industry.
Wind energy development’s overall impact on birds is extremely low compared with other human-related activities. No matter how extensively wind is developed in the future, the number of bird deaths caused by wind turbines will never be more than a small fraction of those caused by human-related sources like household cats and building collisions.
Bats can also collide with wind turbines.  Before 2003, bat fatalities at wind farms were generally believed to be low.  However, in 2003, routine avian studies by the operator of a new wind power plant in West Virginia discovered bat kills in numbers much larger than previously known.  Since then, fatalities have been documented at higher than expected rates in Pennsylvania, Alberta, New York State and some other locations.  After the initial 2003 discoveries, supporters of wind energy and bats reacted quickly, forming a new organization, the Bats & Wind Energy Cooperative (BWEC), in late 2003.  BWEC includes AWEA, Bat Conservation International, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory.  This initiative raises millions of dollars to fund studies designed to reduce bat mortality.  BWEC is focused on finding good site screening tools and testing mitigation measures, including ultrasonic deterrent devices to warn bats away from turbines.