INTERVIEW

I interviewed my aunt Kim Payne, she is a scientist/biologist for an environmental consulting company.

What are the affects of offshore wind turbines on the marine life?
The new scientific community doesn't know for sure how the installation of offshore wind turbines affect the environment. There is a potential for a disruption to migratory fish and lobsters. Also Eco sounding whales could be disturbed by the underground cables that connect each wind turbine to each other and to the power grid onshore.
There are different models of turbine anchors; some are installed like a fence post, others have 4 smaller supportive legs off the main post.
There are some benefits to installing turbines offshore. Besides the energy they produce, after a while the post become covered in growth, like anything else left in the water or a long period of time. This growth can provide additional food and shelter for organisms in need around the turbines.
What are the environmental affects of wind turbines in Maine?
When wind farms are installed on shore in Maine, there is a significant environmental footprint. There has to be roads built and maintained up to the turbines, which are mostly on ridge tops. The initial construction of he turbines can be damaging to the environment around, and the footprints of the turbines can destroy the vegetation and habitats of animals.
The parts for the wind turbines are shipped here, which uses oil.
When scientist are planning the placement of a wind farm, there are lots of factors to consider. Shallow water or deep water? Aunt Kim says deep water because shallow water is generally a nursery for young fish and crustaceans. Shallow water is more protected and is a dynamic habitat.
Maine has some strict rules regarding where turbines can and cannot be put. They can't be installed in an area that is known as a deer yard, they cannot be on any sort of migration route for birds, fish, whales, or bats. They also can't be in a wetland or fragile area.
We have more rules about this than Europe does, this is could be one reason why they are so far ahead of us.
One of the symptoms that can occur from"not in my back yard syndrome" is the flicker affect. This is when the sun or light behind the turning wind turbine creates an annoying flickering. It can agitate people in the area has apparently cause complaints.
Despite that, Maine is one of the most dependant states. The majority of our energy comes from oil from other states! Needless to say, this needs to change. If we started doing more with wind and/or solar power, Maine could see some big positive changes.

article 8

Reported by The Guardian Newspaper, the weather in Spain has been particularly windy. This is a good thing. This wind has produced enough electricity for 40 percent of the country !!! Because of this recent spike in extra breezy days, Spain is now the 4th leading country in the world. The United States is first in producing wind energy but the amount we produce doesn't nearly add up to the amount we need.

Final FOCUS; further research needed

When I wrote my essay lots of new questions emerged, as you may have noticed if you read it. Questions to do with the financial aspect of wind power, because that is what hold a lot of people back. Why is it so expensive? How can costs be brought down? I also have lots of questions about the placement of turbines. I would say the second most common reason wind power isn't utilized in a lot of communities is the noise. Also there has always been the crippling 'not in my back yard' syndrome that prevents the progression of alternative energy. My knowledge has been integrated into my thinking and I think I am able to develop my thoughts with a mild amount of depth.
The final focus of my topic will be; how to get wind turbines into residential areas and what kind of funding is available for places like schools, hospitals or non profits that are looking into alternative power. To draw final conclusions I need to be more specific about the choosing of my articles, researching what it is that I want to know about, about my topic will make the process more enjoyable.
For my oral presentation, I will most likely create some kind of visual or diagram to show the class maybe how wind power works, or how a wind farm could benefit a community.

Response to #7

This article was really specific. It was for the people of Cape May and all the the rules they had to follow when they installed wind turbines on their property. I'm not sure if it's like this everywhere, but there were a lot of regulations. Other than the expense, maybe these standards are part of the reason people don't jump at the option of an alternative way to power their homes. If a company could invent a wind turbine that was cohesive to suburban life and less expensive, that would be perfect.

# 7 Standards for the instilations of wind turbines & solar

This article list the rules and regulations pertaining to the instillation of wind turbines. Things like how tall they are aloud to be in a certain area and which areas they are aloud to be in.
For example, the minimum lot size for a turbine is a half an acre. Also, wind turbines are not permitted on front lawns.""• For lots between one acre and three acres, wind turbines shall be set back from all property lines a distance equal to 100 percent of the height of the structure including the blades. For lots larger than three acres, wind turbines shall be set back from all property lines a distance of equal to 200 percent of the height of the structure including the blades. No portion of the wind generator shall extend beyond any overhead utility lines, unless written permission is granted by the utility.""free standing wind Turbines may not exceed 50 ft on a half an acre lot, 80 ft on lots ranging from a full acre to 3 acres. if the lot is 3 or more acres the maximum height of 150 ft is permitted.
Only one turbine per property
No turbines are aloud to be installed on roof tops.
Residential turbines are aloud a 'nameplate capacity of 10 kilowatts or less.'

Katrina's third Response

Kelsey! Your blog is great partly because I find your topic much like my own (aka very intriguing), and partly because it has a good personal feel in the responses. I especially like the military post, and the words : "huge gas guzzling vehicles are not the most effective modes of transportation." Haha, I found that this was a rather true view of hummers. As for the rest of your blog, good with the exception of the citations. They were a bit confusing. Overall keep up the good work! :)

Hayden Response to Kelsey

I really liked your subject and how interesting I found all of your notes and responses. Unfortunately, your citations were confusing and I couldn't read the yellow text on the beige background. But other than that, the information was good!

Jackson's 3rd response

Hi Kelsey! Your blog is really interesting, and I especially like the article about the Military's realization that they should go green. All of your posts are consistently informative, and I look forward to reading more of them. My only suggestion would be to change the font color of your notes to make them easier to read.

response to lean green war machine

I think its fantastic that the military is finally realizing that alternative energy is the most logical way to go. It makes perfect sense in every way, its to ad it took them this long to figure it out. I love that not only is the military creating fuel efficient vehicles for the troops, but they are also thinking of using solar power for the pentagon and the bases around the country. Even better, the project Grow Clean Air is being created to counter act the carbon emissions produced by bases. I never thought I'd say that I was happy about something the military is doing, but these are definitely big steps in the right direction when it comes to changing the country over to alternative fuels.

Lean Green War Machine

Over the past few years, the military has realized, that huge gas guzzling vehicles are not the most effective modes of transportation, also, it doesn't pay to burn barrels of oil to keep tents & showers warm. Along with the high price of oil, the military also has to pay to ship it to where its needed, doubling the cost.
That is why, they are finally starting to smarten up. Dan Nolan goal is to have solar panels and wind turbines at the Pentagon. "We are only limited by our imaginations," says Nolan. And hes right, with gas prices soring, military leaders are beginning to realize that fuel efficiency is the way to go. "Welcome to a new age of hybrid tanks, fuel efficient hum-vees and bio-generators that transform trash into power."
It is because of the gas prices that these changes are happening, in the United States alone, the army, navy and air force use up an approximate 340,000 barrel PER DAY. In 2007 the Defense Department spent $11.6 billion on petroleum products, an increased price from 2005, when they only spent a frugal 7.8 billion.
Although thee is still a lot of improvement to be made, there have been many steps in the right direction. At Georgia Tech. There has been research for a new armored vehicle that weighs less and uses less gas, but is still just as effective. Also, the Air Force is researching a new design for planes to reduce fuel consumption up to ten times.
The military hopes to plant 'urban forests' in all of is bases in the country. The goal is to offset the carbon emissions generated by the people living there. This awesome ten year plan is called "Grow Clean Air."