Wind Power: A Preferable Alternative

I have grown increasingly weary over time of the ignorant opposition to wind power in this state (and country). The following letter to the editor provoked me to finally send my own:

Wind farms, other boondoggles a burden on Ohio's economy | mansfieldnewsjournal.com | Mansfield News Journal

Dear Editor:

Subject: Wind Power: A Preferable Alternative

The letter entitled "Wind farms, other boondoggles a burden on Ohio's economy," which appeared in the January 24, 2001 edition, made several unsubstantiated claims. While all energy sources have some negative effects, alternatives such as wind power must be compared to conventional sources. In Ohio, this means coal. Such an evaluation shows that wind power wins on all counts.

Let's consider birds: fossil fuel based electricity causes many times more fatalities than wind farms per gigawatt hour. Even with more turbines, many times more birds are killed by each of automobiles, electric lines, hunting, cats, and even windows! (I'm sure the letter author would not advocate getting rid of cars to protect birds.) As for other environmental and health costs, while wind power is negligible, coal mining and burning contaminates water with mercury, destroys wildlife habitat, scars the landscape, puts harmful particulates into the air, and causes global warming. Worse, coal power has terrible health effects, including contributing to childhood asthma and causing estimated thousands of premature deaths each year. In terms of noise and appearance, wind turbines are much more benign and beautiful than dirty, ugly, loud, smoke-belching and smelly coal fired plants. With regard to space: wind farms also serve as agricultural farms. Meanwhile, coal mines destroy the land and produce toxic water ponds, while coal plants harm the livability of the areas surrounding them for miles. Addressing cost, wind power easily achieves parity with coal (or is cheaper!) if all the social, environmental, and health costs are factored in. Finally, conventional sources have are the unreliability of variable fuel costs, and plants shut down occasionally without notice. As a result, reserves are and will be integrated into any system with. In addition, no one is advocating depending totally on wind power: a mix of renewable sources are necessary.

Wind power may not be perfect, but an honest and fact-based assessment clearly shows that it is far preferable than the main alternative of coal. Farbeit from hurting Ohio's economy, wind power is an essential element if we are to ensure the clean and cost-effective energy sources on which a prosperous future depends.

Nathan Ruggles
Cincinnati (formerly of Akron)