Wind Generation: Pros and Cons

Introduction

Wind is an energy that can be very useful if converted to form energy. The process of wind power has been adopted by people in order to convert the wind energy into form energy so that it can be applicable in different fields such as generation of electricity. The harnessing of wind power is not a current activity as it is one of the early achievements made by man. The activity has been practiced by people for many years with slight adjustments being made in order to make the process easier to operate. The steady increase of energy production has influenced the application of wind powered generators over the years (Ackerman and Soder 7). Wind is highly available and this gives one of the reasons as to why it is very popular among the people.  The wind turbines are quite popular in converting the wind energy into the different forms of energy although the electrical generators are used to convert it to electrical energy (Justin par.4). Wind generated electricity is appreciated by its users but also tends to have its own disadvantages. Therefore, this paper aims to look at wind generated electricity and its cons despite its high usage worldwide.

Wind energy is not as expensive as other forms of energy but there are some initial costs that have to be endured by the users.  The costs are mainly in the installation of the wind turbines used in the conversion of the wind energy (Slootweg 12). The turbines are quite useful in the villages and in residential areas. The utility bills are reduced since the excess power is sold to the electricity company and the utility power that is mainly used in the household is displaced. The wind is a good resource and based on the fact that most of the resources are slowly diminishing in from the environment, the wind is considered very suitable for the economy (Hackleman 23). The interest charged at the money invested in the installation process may also be viewed as expensive by some of the users and the amount of energy produced by the wind will also determine the total cost. The amount of wind that is available in a given area will determine whether the user will have expensive power.  The electricity turbine will be able to produce installed in an area will not determine the expense of the power but the wind in the area will. However, the wind turbines vary in their expenses as the modern ones are known to be quite expensive than the smaller individual units (Justin Par.2). Despite the fact that wind generated electricity was introduced many decades ago, it has not run out of fashion as many people are still embracing it internationally and its installation has become very popular.

Pros

As mentioned earlier wind is readily available and it is free hence, any individual can be able to access it. The evolution of technology has enabled the capturing of wind to be very effective.  The introduction of wind generated electricity begun in1888 and the modern technology of wind power industry was in 1979. The production of the wind turbines was welcomed by the users and this has been improved to the modern technology where the electric generators are used as well.

Effects of pollution on the environment have been one of the major cases that the people have been trying to deal with. However, wind is not pollutant and the energy it produces after the wind turbines are built is not harmful to the environment either, (Ackerman and Soder 10). The green house gases are not emitted by the energy or other forms of pollutants. Wind is also renewable further adding to the non- pollutant source of energy.

The wind farms set do not consume a lot of space as the turbines may be tall but the surface area occupied is very small.  Therefore, other activities revolving around agriculture can still be carried out with minimal interruptions. The wind farms are also known to add to the beauty of the landscape.

Wind energy is considered as one of the cheapest ways of producing energy that can be able to satisfy a large population. This is attributed to the fact that over the past years the costs of producing wind energy has significantly reduced. This is important as the economy is favoring wind power despite the crises that have been ongoing in the field.

Individuals who reside in the remote areas can still have access to electricity despite the fact that they may not be covered by the power grid (Hackleman 26). This cab neb made necessary as they can use the wind turbines to generate their own supply of electricity.

The wind turbines are flexible as different people can be able to use them including businesses and the people too.  The turbines are available in different sizes making it possible for the small towns, villages and even the single households to make good use of them.

Cons

The wind generated electricity is highly appreciated by people and has become very popular over the years. As much as the advantages are existent and it is beneficial to people despite their locations, there are certain disadvantages that may rule out the application of wind generated electricity as the best option for most people.

As mentioned earlier, wind is readily available and it makes it an advantage but the strength of the wind is constantly varying and one cannot fully depend on it.  The strength has been evidenced to vary in strength from zero to a very strong force (Neij 370).  Therefore, the wind can be a let down when one is depending on it for electricity. The security of always having strong wind despite the location of the household is not strong.  In general, there will be times when the wind cannot be able to produce any electricity at all. Thus, this makes the wind not a dependable source despite its availability and it being free.

The lack of wind prediction makes it not suitable for certain institutions not to depend on it especially the one's dealing with electricity oriented materials. There is advanced machinery that can be used to predict the availability of wind but they are not as reliable as well since their predictions are not certain. Implementing wind generated electricity will require an individual to have enough knowledge on wind conditions and the weather (Justin par.5). The practice is long term and not short term forecasting making one not to depend entirely on the wind. Incase the no wind season is persistent then it is quite a loss for the user. 

Wind power is credited for being a non- pollutant unlike other forms of energy.  However, wind polluted the environment through noise pollution. The pollution may not be as direct like when it is related to other sources of noise pollution but the noise emitted during the process is a contributing factor. The noise originates from the spinning mills and the turbines, making it a long term issue if it continues for a long time.

The pollution of the environment by the wind power is not direct but the implementation of the process causes pollution in the environment.  In order to get the wind energy, the turbines are used and the manufacturing process of the turbine sis considered as pollution to the environment. Hence, wind power is said to contribute to the pollution of the environment.

The expenses that the users face may not be comfortable with every individual depending on their financial status. As mentioned earlier, the users encounter the installation costs, which are mainly the costs of the equipments. The property used to facilitate the process may also appear to be costly especially for individuals who do not have readily available lands (Ackerman and Soder 13). The advantage in the process is that the people using this method are able to save some money per wattage they are using but affording the apparatus for the process is not easy for most people.

Location limits the production of wind energy for an individual.  The consistent high winds vary according to certain locations, which are most suitable for the wind farms and acquiring such lands may be very expensive making it near impossible for some of the potential users.  In order to avoid unnecessary losses in the transmission process, the wind farms are advised to be near the areas where the energy will be utilized. The turbines may also be rendered useless once the winds change direction.

As some people may view the wind farms as attractive, other have a different opinion as they look at the farms as unattractive and very unsightly. The natural look of the countryside is spoilt by the turbine additions.

Some of the wildlife is put at risk by the implementation of the turbines raising a problem with the naturalists as it is viewed as an ecological hazard.  The spinning turbines are viewed ad a threat to the birds as they can easily run into them killing them instantly. The wind farms that produce high energy have been connected to interfering with the television cables and signal for the neighboring residents.

The energy output of the farms has been rated to be very low on a general level. The amount of energy that can be powered by a large turbine that is running at full speed can only be able to satisfy about 475 homes (Hackleman 32). In order to satisfy areas with large populations, they will need huge wind farms that will be able to generate power significant enough to satisfy a large population.

The application of wind power in order to get wind generated electricity has been quite appealing to many people.  This may be attributed to the fact that it was introduced many years ago but its significance is still applicable to date with all the evolution that has occurred (Slootweg 10). Environmental sustenance is one of the major benefits that are mainly reflected in the application of wind energy especially by energy conservationists and scientists. The public appreciates this fact as well as it is cheap especially since the economic situation globally ahs been on a downward slope adding to many expenses (Neij 376). Therefore, most people are able to operate without having to worry about the electricity bills. However, the disadvantages that are associated with wind generated electricity may present difficult problems for the users that may be difficult to deal with.

Conclusion

In general, wind generated electricity is highly appreciated and has been termed as very beneficial many times by the users. However, there are the disadvantages that may cancel out some of the advantages rendering the energy production system quite difficult to accommodate for some of the users. The expenses may not be encountered in the utilization of the system but they are highly covered in the implementation process. The lack of wind predictability has been witnessed to be the major problem that the users face and could also lead to losses especially if the area selected is not suitable.