TatonkaJames Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 All these countries get further along than us, but it's all still fiction for those in the bubble; According to new numbers published by WWF Scotland this week, wind turbines generated enough electricity in October to power 3,045,000 homes in the U.K. — more than enough for all the homes in Scotland. Referring to it as a “bumper month” for renewable energy, WWF Scotland’s director Lang Banks said in a statement that “while nuclear power plants were being forced to shut because of cracks, Scotland’s wind and sunshine were quietly and cleanly helping to keep the lights on in homes across the country.” Based on figures provided by WeatherEnergy, part of the European EnergizAIR project, the data also showed that for those homes fitted with solar panels, there was enough sunshine to meet around 40 percent of the electricity needs of an average home. Wind energy has been thriving in the U.K. in recent months. In August the U.K set a new record for wind power generation, with wind accounting for seventeen percent of national demand. This came around the time that EDF Energy announced it was temporarily shutting down four of its U.K. reactors, or around a quarter of its total nuclear generating capacity, due to longevity issues. The four EDF reactors under investigation were commissioned in 1983 and are officially scheduled to be taken out of service in 2019. Even for the U.K., Scotland is a green energy leader. As of September, the country got 29.8 percent of its electricity from renewables, 34.4 percent from nuclear, and only 34.4 percent from fossil fuels. Scotland hopes to generate the equivalent of 100 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2020 and to export non-renewable production from conventional power plants to countries like England. In the first quarter of this year, Scotland generated a record 6,678 gigawatt-hours of renewable electricity, according to government figures, an increase of 55.9 percent from a year before. Wind generation in the first quarter of 2014 was also at a record high level of 4,214 GWh, up 4 percent year over year. According to the government, as of March of this year Scotland had 6.8 gigawatts of installed renewable electricity generation capacity, with an additional 6.5 gigawatts of capacity either under construction or consented, the majority of which is expected to come from onshore wind generation. Including projects in the planning stages, this figure totals 20.5 gigawatts. Scotland’s largest wind farm is also the U.K.’s largest. Whitelee Windfarm near Glasgow has a 539 megawatt capacity, and generates enough electricity to power just under 300,000 homes. "All The Worlds A Stooge" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddy Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 so when can i put up a windmill on my front lawn? "Ok, Eddy you were right" - minivin5 "Oddly enough, Eddy is right fairly often"- TimS "Eddy is correct" - TomT "Say what you will about Eh-ddy but he actually does know a few things." - The Commish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inthered Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 e-mail: ceu@scotland.gsi.gov.uk At my age, just about everything pisses me off! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saltydawg Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 And France is energy-independent because it uses all nuclear power. We are certainly doing it wrong. - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkrock Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Scotland has a population smaller than Long Island. I'm skeptical that wind energy is scalable to meet the demands we have in the US. I'm not a huge nuclear fan, but to me, that seems like our best option right now, for all it's faults. "mother Theresa was a POS"-fish'nmagician Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gotcow? Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 I'm sure William Wallace would be proud. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digger in Va Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Scotland has a population smaller than Long Island. I'm skeptical that wind energy is scalable to meet the demands we have in the US. I'm not a huge nuclear fan, but to me, that seems like our best option right now, for all it's faults. We have many places that the density is just too high. DiggerinVa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Quote:Originally Posted by Eddy so when can i put up a windmill on my front lawn? My town, run entirely by hardcore liberals, would NEVER "allow" me to build a windmil. TJ, why is that? “My happiness is not the means to any end. It is the end. It is its own goal. It is its own purpose.” Ayn Rand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gotcow? Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 How many wind turbines in how many places would it take to power all the homes in the US? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkrock Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 In my limited knowledge of wind turbine technology, my understanding is they are fairly inefficient. At low wind speeds, they consume more energy than they generate, and at high wind speeds they need to be braked or shut down to avoid burning up the wires. They also can't be adjusted to meet peak time demands,etc. it all revolves around Mother Nature, no pun intended. "mother Theresa was a POS"-fish'nmagician Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
epanzella Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Put up enough wind turbines to power New York City and there won't be a bird left in the northern hemisphere plus they'll wear out before they pay for themselves. Ed Panzella "BAITS MOTEL" - 2450 Maycraft Pilothouse Higganum, Ct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BW Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Good for them... all 5million of them.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
basenjib123 Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 http://www.dailytech.com/500+Million+Wasted+on+Bankrupt+Solar+Panel+Company+White+House+was+Warned/article22735.htm How soon they forget. * Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Williams Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 All these countries get further along than us, but it's all still fiction for those in the bubble; What bubble? What fiction? It almost sounds like you think this is some sort of proof that we could supply all our power requirements with wind turbines just like Scotland, which has a very low population density and lots of empty spaces to put wind turbines along a windy coastline.... but that can't be it because that would be silly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimP Posted November 7, 2014 Report Share Posted November 7, 2014 Conservatives tried to put windmills in nantucket sound. The kennedy's shut it down. They didn't want to see the blades of the turbines from their Hyannisport compound. NIMBY's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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