Wind Turbines

[Connemmara]

Did not know where to put this question - but on the subject of wind turbines - why are people so against them. I genuinely know nothing about them.

[EvianBaby]

Would the birds actually go near them? They do make a bit of a thumping noise when they spin.

[New Judge]

“…when the lights start going out on cold winters' evenings at about 1700 hours in about 4 year's time…” I just hope the wind’s blowing, bm. The reason the UK faces an “energy gap” is that successive governments of all persuasions have prevaricated beyond belief trying to appease the Green lobby above the far more important provision of energy supplies which should be (a) reliable and (b) reasonably priced. Building wind turbines has not assisted in either aspect of that aim.

These things are noisy, ugly (subjective I know) but most importantly just about the most costly inefficient unreliable method of producing electricity known to man. Only with the promise of vast subsidies (shelled out by customers, natch) can any provider even consider building them.

[emmie]

i wouldn't want to be in the way of that coming down

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2270029/UK-weather-Heavy-floods-wreak-havoc-gale-force-winds-sends-115ft-turbine-ground.html

[vulcan42]

The picture on Ems link sums it all up for me, nothing but huge forests of these things in every direction. I have tried to find out but can get no definitive answer, just how many do we need? Do we end up with a generator in every square 20 yards of the whole country? The ones near me seem to spend most of the time switched off anyway, it's either not windy enough or too windy. We are in the 21st century and yet we're relying on the wind for energy, perhaps we should return to the days of sailing ships and save more money. If we want enough energy for this country we have to go nuclear.

[emmie]

many don't seem to realise just how big many of them are, 120 metres, heaven sake.

[emmie]

vulcan, but why didn't the politicians, and those in the know do something about it years ago, just when things are going pear shaped, it's not as though they didn't know, just prevaricated over what to do. Now we have these wretched things dotted around the place, many don't want them, but they have been built anyway, and they have simply been accused of nimbyism, stupid.

[LazyGun]

I like them, myself. Do not find them ugly at all - quite the opposite, if anything.

I would agree that they are not the sole answer to the problem of green energy generation,and as a rule I would favour off-shore rather than on-shore facilities, but overall I think they are great.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_turbine

[emmie]

there are few things in life i hate, but they are one.

[society]

I have no opinion on them, but I think politicians and 'green' people would rally in favour of them.

[baza]

they are no longer dotted about but joining up to encompass us all, worse than the daleks, we import them, and pay through the nose just to look at them. The damned things are breeding in the Thames estuary, what damage is being done to the environment ?

[emmie]

no one knows, because it's still relatively early days, i think they are a waste of huge amounts of money, and many people having them dumped on their doorsteps seems wrong.

[Connemmara]

why are some words coming up in red

[emmie]

they are links to the stories...

[Connemmara]

they're gone now

[emmie]

the links are still there.

[Connemmara]

no em I was getting in red like one word help really down but they are gone now - no I know the links are there okay.

[jake-the-peg]

EM's link highlights for me everything which is wrong with the argument

It is written by James Delingole in the Telegraph

No body seems to have questioned his reliability as his views probably reinforced their own prejudices

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php/James_Delingpole

James has a Masters in English Language and Literature from Oxford University and has absolutely no Scientific background at all

Bravely he doesn't let his lack of any science qualifications be a bar to his holding strong beliefs on anthropegenic global warming which he describes as a 'myth'

On what basis he is qualified to make that assessment I have no idea

Although he has said

'Climate change sceptics have smaller members, uglier wives, dumber kids' says new study made up by warmists'

Which rather sums up his contribution to what is the defining debate of the century.

Unfortunately a number of right wing thinkers have over the years associated the environmental movement with 'left wing hippies' and have an emotional response to anything they see as from them.

As the Scientific evidence has swung solidly behind Antropogenic Global warming they have become more emotional and vocal in their opposition to anything that smacks to them of 'Green issues'but it's left them with almost zero credible scientific backers on their side and that leaves the ball with people like Delingpole hurling insults in the Telegraph and preaching to his own little cohort of reactionaries whilst the world moves on.

[emmie]

not sure why then..