Wind Energy and renewable energy blog

English Politicians Reject 50 MW Wind Farm Whilst Scots Surge Ahead

English Councillors this week voted to object to a controversial 19 turbine, 50MW wind farm near Marshland St James, in the Norfolk Fens. Meanwhile over the border in the Highlands of Scotland, local officials approved the 25 turbine, 50MW Camster Wind Farm between Lybster and Watten.

These decisions do not come as a surprise. Approval rates for wind energy projects have been higher in Scotland than in England and Wales for more than a few years.

UK Supermarket to Generate Electricity from Unsold Food

UK supermarket Sainsbury’s is to start converting its annual 60,000 tonnes of food waste into energy instead of sending it to landfill.
Under the new scheme, the waste will be taken to anaerobic digester plants and converted into methane gas which will in turn generate electricity. The scheme has already been trialled at a digester [...]

Free Renewable Energy Advice for UK Planners

A free advice service is to be launched in the UK in February offering planning officers support on renewable energy.

The Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) has been commissioned by the Department of Energy and Climate Change and the Department of Communities and Local Government to pilot the initiative further to the government’s Renewable Energy Strategy consultation in June. A new network, will offer free support of up to one-day’s worth of an expert’s time to be able to deal with complex queries that require more in-depth research, clarification and response.

Masdar – Green Home of the World Future Energy Summit

Earlier this week Abu Dhabi ruler, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed used the eve of the World Future Energy Summit as a world stage for announcing the Emirate’s new green credentials through the imposition of a challenging 7% renewable energy target. Almost none of Abu Dhabi’s energy currently comes from renewable sources.

Wind Energy Overtakes Hydro as Leading Renewable Technology

Published statistics from the UK government’s restats website show rapid growth in the contribution of the wind energy sector to UK electricity generation.

Total electricity generation from renewables rose to 4.98% in 2007. The main contributors to this substantial increase were 917 GWh from onshore wind (+26%) and 439 GWh from large scale hydro (+ 11%). Electricity output from wind energy overtook hydro to become the most significant and leading technology for renewable generation.

Floating Wind Turbine Company to Receive Government Grant

The UK’s Energy Technology Institute has selected a floating 5 MW offshore wind turbine project as one of the first four recipients of funds under a new grant initiative.

Project Deepwater Turbine, a London based consortium made up of Blue H, BAE Systems PLC, EDF Energy, CEFAS, SLP and Romax wants to position offshore wind energy turbines between 30 and 300m deep in seas otherwise too inhospitable for construction of conventional foundations.

UFO Stories Surround Damaged Wind Turbine

A wind turbine located in the east of England lost a blade on Sunday with a second blade being seriously damaged. An investigation is currently being carried out on the site operated by Ecotricity.

The cause of the damage is currently unknown but wind speeds were not exceptionally high. A neighbour to the wind farm claims to have seen mysterious lights that night prompting stories of UFO’s.

The Crucial Role of the Planning System in Delivering Renewable Energy Projects

As we enter into 2009 we face a life threatening problem – that of climate change. Dealing with environmental and energy issues is essential if we are to save lives in the future. In order to deliver the changes needed we must have an effective planning system.

In the early 1900’s poor people in UK cities were building houses on top of each other creating overcrowded slums with no infrastructure.

Renewable Energy – The Goldilocks Problem

I enjoyed an analogy made in a recent Renewable Energy World article where Santa Barbara’s Community Environmental Council representative Tam Hunt talks about “The Goldilocks Problem” faced in the struggle to provide enough renewable energy.

Renewable Energy Growth Slows in US but Steady in the UK

President Barack Obama has been in the press over the last few days for putting together the greenest energy team in US history. He has plugged “green collar” jobs heavily as part of the economic recovery strategy.

Renewable energy projects such as wind farms are, along with other energy projects expensive to build but cheap to run.

Campaign for the Protection of Rural England Against Renewable Energy but not Open Cast Coal Mining

Green correpondant George Monbiot recently took apart Shaun Spiers in an interview trying to establish why the Council for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE) regularly opposes wind energy projects but not open cast mining.

Scottish North Sea Mooted to Accomodate Carbon From Polluting Power Stations

Leader of the Scottish National Party Alex Salmond has a clear remit when it comes to fossil fuels and climate change issues. Salmond and the European Commission support proposals to develop carbon capture and storage from coal fired power stations in the North Sea.

Although innovative, this technology is a sticking plaster for our use of finite fossil fuels.

Sainsbury’s to Buy Renewable Electricity Direct From Scottish Wind Farm

Sainsbury’s has signed a deal with small Scottish company – A7 Lochhead, to take the electricity from a 3 wind turbine energy project near Glasgow which has already been granted planning consent.

Sainsbury’s, advised by Utilix says that the wind energy project would provide for the equivalent of 1 percent of the retailer’s electricity requirements.

Coal Mining on the Rise

The number of coal fired power stations and planning applications for opencast coal mines in the UK have increased significantly according to report recently published by a climate change and energy research charity.

The Public Interest Research Centre (PRIC) reported that 58 coal mining applications for either coal mine extensions or new mines have been submitted over the last 18 months. The mines are generally in southern Scotland and Northern England.

Wind Energy Questions – What is Wind Turbine Shadow Flicker?

Tall structures such as wind turbines cast shadows, which vary in length according to the sun’s altitude and position. Rotating wind turbine blades cast moving shadows which could under certain conditions cause flickering at nearby properties. This effect is similar to the flicker you may have experienced when driving, if the low winter sun is shining through trees and then your car window.

Is the Noise All in Your Head? – Wind Turbine Noise, Physcology and World Perspective

Whilst not in anyway qualified in acoustics, I surprised myself by becoming rather fascinated by the subject when I realized that although you can measure sound very objectively, the effect of this sound on humans varies extensively and is very much linked to psychology. People who are very opposed to wind energy projects and perceive them to be something bad or harmful react very differently to people supportive of wind energy if perceiving any source of noise from the wind turbines. An example of the plethora of reasons why this might result in some people have different experiences than others is “the cognitive itch” used to describe a re-occurring memory of something- like a catchy tune continually replaying in someone’s head.

UK Nuclear Power Stations and Large Wind Farms will not be Rushed Through

The UK Government’s Planning Bill proposes a new Infrastructure Planning Committee (IPC) which will be responsible for decisions on big infrastructure projects such as nuclear power stations, new airport terminals and large wind energy projects.

The aim of the Planning Bill and this new IPC Committee is to speed up planning decisions, however it is obvious that lumping large wind energy projects, nuclear power stations and airports under the same system is going to bring trouble, particularly as there is no way that the UK government will get away with not giving the general public their human rights to speak at a public hearing.

How Wind Energy Developers & Locally Elected Officials Behave

Timlynn Babitsky of Wind Power Handbook recently wrote a interesting post about the conduct of wind developers in New York. Timlynn talks about wind farm developers bribing officials and explains that a new code of conduct has recently been introduced to stop questionable deals being struck between developers and officials and developers and developers behind closed doors.

The UK experienced corruption at the local level in the 1980’s when big out of town supermarket developers were caught bribing locally elected councillors who made decisions on planning consents. Subsequently an investigation took place involving the Nolan Committee and a set of recommendations published. The Nolan Committee’s First Report on Standards in Public Life recommended a code of conduct be introduced for local government officers and locally elected councillors. This code has a big impact on the way council officials behave, even to the point that it is sometimes difficult to even talk to these decision makers about a wind energy project.

Peak District National Park Slams Wind Energy

The Peak District National Park Authority has slammed a 4 wind turbine proposal close to the park boundary at Carsington Pastures in the county of Derbyshire in the UK.

The Park Authority has decided to team up with Derbyshire Dales Council and go to the High Court to challenge plans for a wind farm near its boundary. This decision was taken despite approval for the 4 wind turbines being granted by a Planning Inspector in July.

Wind Energy Questions – What is the impact of wind turbines on house prices?

We now know that climate change is happening and that the most likely cause is human activity. The predicted rises in global temperatures are likely to have devastating economic, social and environmental effects with the poorest people being the most likely to lose their homes. Despite this house price reduction is often cited as the main concern when renewable energy projects are proposed in the western world.

There has been a number of public opinion polls carried out in the UK and other countries with regard to renewable energy and specifically wind energy. These polls carried out at different stages of the wind farm life generally show support for wind energy. However because wind energy technology is relatively new, there has been very little work carried out in relation to effects on property prices.