The rules have to be changed to make it easier for wind developers to "harvest" the wind, but not be constrained by where they interconnect to the grid. If the perfect wind is in the hills, then send the transmission line into the hills!
Currently, the process is so competitive, developers take the easiest and cheapest way - by looking for transmission lines and then for land and then for wind.
The horse is behind the cart.
Wind energy developers should be looking for the wind, then land and community support (if there even is a community nearby) and then go harvest the wind by putting in transmission lines. The Province has to understand this and help NSPI and wind developers to install the required infrastructure.
The horse is behind the cart.
Wind energy developers should be looking for the wind, then land and community support (if there even is a community nearby) and then go harvest the wind by putting in transmission lines. The Province has to understand this and help NSPI and wind developers to install the required infrastructure.
That is a Provincial matter that could take years to implement. Therefore the Municipalities have a place in this by meanwhile having reasonable setbacks that protect the area residents from the impact of wind turbines.
As things now stand, any future tax income from turbines is increasingly in peril as more and more people realise that these things are not desirable in close proximity. Instead of losing any future wind development, it behoves Council to set out better land use bylaw that allows wind development, protect existing economic structures and protect the health and lifestyle of the people of Cumberland County.
As things now stand, any future tax income from turbines is increasingly in peril as more and more people realise that these things are not desirable in close proximity. Instead of losing any future wind development, it behoves Council to set out better land use bylaw that allows wind development, protect existing economic structures and protect the health and lifestyle of the people of Cumberland County.
2 comments:
One of the biggest costs of wind development is that of the grid connection. Proximity to the grid is clearly an economic driver in site selection, however, it is also equally weighted in technical and environmental concern.
Firstly technical: Long cabling runs between generation points and users create line losses due to the slight electrical resistance in the wire. In order to overcome this it is then necessary to step up the voltage with a substation or some other setup, perhaps HVDC as is used in remote sites in Manitoba. Wind turbines represent small generation points in comparison to thermal stations and thus the line losses, as a percentage of overall output would render any such 'far away' development unfeasible.
Secondly, ecological: The farther away the generation point is from the grid, the more disruption that will be caused in the building of long transmission lines, not to mention unsightly towers.
Line losses are a function of current carried,wire sizes also.
HVDC would reduce some of the radiated electromagnetic energy.
The extra distance desired to place these out of population areas is required for the health of those in their zone of interaction.
The extra cost is to be shared by all users as the price of doing business.
Perhaps these generators should be set up to serve the nearby areas surrounding them only?
The price of oil fired electricity is only going up and oils availability is only going down.
This is the future.
Cost of electricity is only going up no matter how you look at it.
If the ecology was of anyones concern they would learn to use less electricity and we wouldn't require these disrupting the environment.(some is just as ugly as more of the same!)
Post a Comment