Lora 1

Mira Lora

Ms. Woelke

APEL

2019 December 4

Factors to Consider when Concerning Wind Farms

Wind turbines have been a topic of mass discussion recently especially concerning their

negative characteristics and how they affect their value. Windmills have been known to be

unsteady and an unreliable source at times considering it is dependant on the climate and

weather. Windmills are also extremely environmentally friendly and have proven to have made a

positive impact on our environment and economy. On a global scale, wind turbines are

environmentally friendly, cost efficient, and provide “about as much electricity as eight large

nuclear power plants”(Source B). The most important factors when considering whether or not to

establish a wind farm are its functionality, its cost and its disturbance on humans because of

these subjects individual effects on the environment, economy, and safety of all humans.

Because of their reputation for being environmentally safe, not many trust that windmills

can provide enough energy to sustain everyday modern and technology filled lives, but some

would argue that not only are windmills environmentally safe, they also provide more than

enough energy. Most people don’t know that a “typically large wind turbine can generate up to

1.8 MW degrees of electricity, or 5.2 million KWh annually- enough to power nearly 600

households: (Source B) . This is just as much, or more, than a typical nuclear or coal power plant

generates. This shows that windmills can easily generate enough energy to satisfy our need for

energy. Windmills are increasingly making more energy and are the most efficient when
 Lora 2

converting fuel to energy compared to coal, oil, natural gas, biomass, solar, nuclear, hydro, and

geothermal by an astounding 1,164 percent (Source F). This means that overall windmills are the

most effective in doing their jobs and also the most clean and renewable source. This is

important because it is a new way to get more energy for about the same cost while also reducing

the harmful stress being put on our environment by constant oil spills and stripping of natural

resources. This can also be considered controversial, because windmills at their best are

considered efficient but at their worst, wind mills could quickly be deemed unreliable because

they are dependent on the inconsistent weather.

One of the major concerns over windmills and wind farms include their cost, but over

time windmills have shown their value and that they are cost efficient. A small town by the name

of McCamey, Texas introduced wind power in 2000 and soon enough “wind power restored

McCamey’s economy” allowing taxes to only be “increased by 30 percent from 2004 to 2007”

which is 20 percent below average (Source D). This means that since the time windmills were

introduced to this small, texas town, their economy got better showing that wind mills brought

money into their homes rather than out. Of course there’s the initial output of money to install

windmills, but this output of money is quickly replenished after a few months of owning their

own source of energy. Because of these fiscal statistics, windmills have gained much support

from this small town, in fact, “federal tax credits, coupled with Texas mandate required that a

percentage of electricity come from green power producer,” such as the windmill (Source D).

This shows that citizens are satisfied with environmentally safe energy producers, such as the

windmill, especially since they decided to make a percentage of their power come from such a

source and continue to pay taxes supporting these new power-producing changes. When
 Lora 3

considering developing a wind farm, cost would be the next thing to consider after functionality

because of its importance on the owner’s economic status.

After functionality and cost, the next important subject to consider would be its unusual

potential for causing annoyance and at times, peril for humans and animals living nearby..

Windmills have repeatedly shown to be a disturbance to humans living near them giving them

symptoms such as:“nausea, vertigo, blurred vision, unsteady movement, and difficulty reading,

remembering, and thinking” and this concerns the majority of the population that lives by wind

turbines (Source C). These health concerns should be considered an important matter and should

be taken into consideration because of its extreme effects on people. In these situations, it would

be more reasonable for wind farms to develop in less-populated areas. Wind turbines “can be

noisy if you live close to a wind plant, they can be hazardous to birds and bats,” (Source B). This

is important to consider because it seems a bit ironic how windmills are known for being

extremely environmentally friendly and helpful to our climate, but they kill thousands of bats

and birds each year. These bat and bird population could affect the natural food chain in a

striking way if their populations keep on decreasing from windmill accidents. The effects on

humans and animals that windmills give is serious and should have a fair amount of attention

when concerning windmills and their production.

Overall, windmills are a sustainable and renewable source of energy, but they can be

unreliable at times because of their inconsistent tendencies. Wind farms are cost efficient and

provide enough energy to continue supporting our modern and technology filled lives. Windmills

are overall environmentally friendly and clean. Wind turbines can soon provide energy to places

that don’t have a centralized source of energy. Windmills could further assist our environmental
 Lora 4

and climate problems and our economy while also bringing comfort to our homes and continuing

to advance technologies. They have also shown to be a huge annoyance to those living around

them. Many awful side effects come from living near windmills. Windmills are a helpful and

advanced way to bring energy to our country, but they have frequently proven to be inconsistent

and a constant annoyance for locals. Functionality, cost, and effects on humans are all important

factors when considering developing a wind farm because they affect the overall economy and

well-being of humans.