We Were Warned in 1998

[Dorn Hetzel]

One good thing about the migration to larger and larger turbine units is that as the blade diameter goes up, the RPM goes down.

At some point in that progression, they will probably cease to be much of a danger to birds.


I saw some blades being trucked across Texas last week that were easily 125 to 150 feet long and 3 or 4 feet in spoke diameter where they attached to the hub. I wouldn't have wanted to be the trucker trying to maneuver those loads


Average wind velocity rises with the height above ground, so taller and taller towers with bigger and bigger turbines are definitely the future. I think the big ones make much less annoying noise also, much lower frequency.


-Dorn
77FC35
Hogansville, GA

On Tue, May 13, 2008 at 8:27 PM, Pete Masterson <"aeonix1@mac.com"> wrote:

I find them interesting, especially from a moderate distance. They wouldn't bother me. However, the several large windmill farms (Altamont Pass in the SF Bay Area) have discovered that they're a significant hazard to birds. It seems that the birds of prey are attracted to the fields beneath the wind mills. The fields are kept trimmed, reducing cover for the rodents, etc. so the falcons, eagles, etc. come for easy meals -- but they don't always realize that the blades are turning and a lot of birds are getting killed.

Also, since were in the "Pacific flyway" for migrating birds, there are also some ecological fall out from that. There are certain times of year when the wind mills are not operated because of the risk to the birds.

Always lots of unintended consequences...

Pete Masterson

'95 Blue Bird Wanderlodge WBDA 42

El Sobrante CA

"aeonix1@mac.com"

On May 13, 2008, at 11:13 AM, Ryan Wright wrote:

<snip>

Farmers with cheap, remote and windy land that nobody wants to live on

are now finding their property spiking in value. Wind farm operators

are paying several thousand dollars per year, per tower, and the

footprint is so small that the farmer can continue to grow crops. It's

a win-win to me. A friend of mine is about to inherit property with

residual wind farm income over a quarter million dollars a year. Ten

years ago, his father's farm was only worth what they could grow on

it.