Previously I mentioned invisible impacts resulting from increased production of wind turbines. On such impact is the result it can have on wildlife, this year on the Norfolk coastline dozens of dead seal carcasses have been washed ashore, which according to scientists most likely got caught up in the propellers of boats involved in the construction of turbines. Evidence from other projects suggest that environmental consequences could result from the sinking of hundreds of 500-tonne chunks of machinery onto the sea bed. By law the turbine companies are supposed to produce environmental surveys, however the data that they provide is often vague and contradictory.
Examples of these contradiction can be found from many countries, Denmark proved that ducks and geese can avoid flying into turbines successfully, however Belgium evidence claim that many are killed by blades. I guess it just comes down to CRAVEN really. The RSPB fears that it could lose 50% of its sandwich terns to the blades of the turbines. Other scientists warn of the impacts they can have on whales and dolphins, which can get confused by the vibrations the turbines produce. One of the main concerns of the turbines however is not the damage they do when turning, but the frequent failure not to turn at all with lack of wind.
Wind turbines only reach their maximum energy production capacity around 35% of the time, contrasting with 90% for nuclear power and 50% for hydro-electric. However researchers from oxford argue that fears of reliabilty are false, as there wasn't a single moment in the last 35 years where the wind wasn't blowing somewhere in the UK, so with wide distribution and larger turbines, the fall in production can be made up for. Turnbines do have several advantages over altenratives, there is relative speed and easiness in building them, and they can be added to the national grid as soon as they are built, nuclear power stations on the other hand take several years to be able to constribute.
The royal family will also be benefiting creatly from the construction of off-shore turbines. Although Primce Charles describes onshore turbines as "horrendoues blots on the landscape", he with his family have no objections to off-shore turbines, partly due to the fact that they are expected to bring an annual income of between £100 million and £250 million into the Crown estate over the next decade. THis is due to the fact that the house of Windsor own the British seabed as far as 12miles out to sea, and since 2004 have the right to "lease the generation of renewable energy". As well as money from leasing they recieve £1 per megawatt hour of energy produces, which may not sound much, but added up to £2.6 million last year, which is predicted to rise over the next few decades.The main problem in constructing the turbines is the cost, partly bought on due to the rising cost of steel, exchange rate fluctuations and the absense of a supply chain, which casued the cost of production to double in recent years. This means that each unit of electricty produced by wind farms costs twice as much as a unit generated by a coal powered station. Still they are renwable, which is the main boon for environmentalists.
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