Free Republic

The taller the wind turbine, the harder they fall. And they sure are falling. Wind turbine failures are on the uptick, from Oklahoma to Sweden and Colorado to Germany, with all three of the major manufacturers admitting that the race to create bigger turbines has invited manufacturing issues, according to a report from Bloomberg.

Bloomberg Business Week, no foe of green energy, headlines: Wind Turbines Taller Than the Statue of Liberty Are Falling Over.” The article beneath the headline reports on a variety of alarming disasters involving wind turbines, including collapses of very tall sructures.On a calm, sunny day last June, Mike Willey was feeding his cattle when he got a call from the local sheriff’s dispatcher. A motorist had reported that one of the huge turbines at a nearby wind farm had collapsed in dramatic fashion. Willey, chief of the volunteer fire department in Ames, 90 miles northwest of Oklahoma City, set out...

The seventh dead whale in a little over a month washed up on the Jersey Shore this week, sparking a debate about the impact of off-shore activities on marine life. The 20-foot-long humpback whale was found on the beach on Thursday afternoon in Brigantine, the Marine Mammal Stranding Center (MMSC) confirmed Friday. “Due to the incoming tide and low light last night, staff returned at daybreak this morning to take photos,” the update read. “Plans are underway for a necropsy to be performed on the animal.” Thursday’s discovery occurred just miles from where another dead whale was found in Atlantic...

Utilities are paying more for natural gas, which means many Colorado customers will see higher bills starting Oct. 1. The Colorado Public Utilities Commission approved fuel rate adjustments Wednesday for Xcel Energy-Colorado and Atmos Energy Corp. Regulations allow the utilities to pass through higher fuel costs to customers. Although Xcel Energy customers will see monthly increases in the single digits, they could end up paying nearly 54% more in December than they did in December 2021, according to a notice sent by the company. The PUC’s action on the companies’ fuel-cost adjustment is separate from pending decisions on proposed increases...

Wind turbines require massive amounts of rare earths for their generators and motors. A single wind turbine eats up tons of rare earth metals. Rare earth mining carried out in China is horrifyingly destructive to people and the environment. One story described radioactive lakes, high cancer rates and villagers whose "teeth began to fall out" and "hair turned white at unusually young ages". "Children were born with soft bones and cancer rates rocketed." A recent Associated Press story about rare earth mining operations in Burma told of a world where "birds no longer sing, and the herbs no longer grow....

22,000 people lost control of temperatures in their homes for hours Tuesday.. DENVER — During the dog days of summer, it's important to keep your home cool. But when thousands of Xcel customers in Colorado tried adjusting their thermostats Tuesday, they learned they had no control over the temperatures in their own homes. ... Xcel confirmed to Contact Denver7 that 22,000 customers who had signed up for the Colorado AC Rewards program were locked out of their smart thermostats for hours on Tuesday. "It's a voluntary program. Let's remember that this is something that customers choose to be a part...

The numerous casualties of bats at wind turbines (WT) have a negative impact on the populations of affected species and potentially far-reaching consequences for the biodiversity in rural areas. Until now, it could only be assumed that the death of bats had further consequences. Now, a team of scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW) show in a paper in the scientific journal "Conservation Science and Practice" that natural food chains are interrupted, which can have far-reaching negative consequences for agriculture and forestry. The study demonstrates the extent to which the functional importance of bats for...

Last week the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that they had sentenced ESI Energy for a “blatant disregard” of federal wildlife laws of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). In their guilty plea to multiple violations, ESI admitted to the killing of at least 150 bald and golden eagles across 50 of its wind-energy facilities since 2012. Nearly all died of blunt force trauma attributable to being struck by a wind-turbine blade. The so-called “clean” energy company — a subsidiary of NextEra Energy — was fined $8 million, or about $53,300 per carcass. It turns out that the fine...

Some turbines killed multiple eagles and because the carcasses are not always found, officials said the number killed was likely higher than the 150 birds cited in court documents. Wind energy company pleads guilty after at least 150 eagles killed in U.S. Some turbines killed multiple eagles and because the carcasses are not always found, officials said the number killed was likely higher than the 150 birds cited in court documents. NextEra Energy was sentenced to probation and ordered to pay more than $8 million in fines and restitution after at least 150 eagles were killed over the past decade....

A U.S. wind power developer pleaded guilty to multiple violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act after its wind turbine blades allegedly killed more than 135 bald and golden eagles across the country. The company, ESI Energy, pleaded guilty Tuesday to three counts of violations in the form of golden eagle deaths. Prosecutors said the birds were documented to have been killed by blunt force trauma after being struck by its wind turbine blades at its facilities in Wyoming or New Mexico, where ESI had not applied for the necessary permits. As part of the settlement, ESI “acknowledged that at...

Proprietors of a series of green energy wind farms have been placed on probation and ordered to pay $8 million in fines and restitution after pleading guilty to killing upwards of 150 eagles across the past decade in eight states, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. The criminal case was decided against the backdrop of President Joe Biden pushing for more onshore and offshore renewable energy from wind, solar and other sources, as Breitbart News reported. It’s illegal to kill or harm eagles under U.S. federal law. AP reports NextEra Energy subsidiary ESI Energy pleaded guilty to three counts of violating...

TransAlta Renewables Inc. has to replace foundations of 50 wind turbines at Kent Hills wind farm.. An investigation into what caused the collapse of a wind turbine at New Brunswick's largest wind farm has revealed serious structural issues that affect not only the turbine that fell, but dozens of others in the area as well. According to TransAlta Renewables Inc., the Alberta-based company that owns and operates the Kent Hills wind farm, the cracks formed because of "deficiencies in the original design of the foundations." This caused a 100-metre-tall turbine to collapse in the fall of 2021. Now the company...

Industry leaders called for 'urgent action' after the National Grid warned electricity supplies would be 'tight'.. ... Latest sign of a grim winter outlook for UK with economy clobbered by rising inflation and supply chain issues.. The supply of electricity to Britain this winter will be 'tight' and there is a greater risk of blackouts, the National Grid warned today - as soaring energy prices leave families facing sky- high bills. ... Gas is in high demand due to the reopening of the global economy, colder temperatures, and reduced wind and solar output due to unfavourable conditions. ... Omni Energy...

DENVER — Xcel Energy customers could see higher bills in 2022. The company submitted a proposal to raise rates to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. They say the increase will help fund “next-generation technology investments that expand and strengthen the reliability of the electric grid for customers, advance Colorado’s clean energy policies, and increase capacity to meet growing customer needs and expectations.” Xcel said that since 2019 and through 2022, it will spend for $4 billion on the investments. How much will my bill increase? Residential customers would see their bills increase by an average of $9.46 a month, or...

Bladeless turbines that waggles like a dashboard toy could be the wind-harnessing tool of the future as they move within the range of vibration of the wind to generate electricity. The design recently won the approval of Norway’s state energy company Equinor, which named Vortex on a list of the 10 most exciting startups within the energy sector

The now-familiar sight of traditional propeller wind turbines could be replaced in the future with wind farms containing more compact and efficient vertical turbines. [Photo in Comment #1]

Wednesday morning more than 1.3 million electric power customers across Texas remain without power during the coldest winter storm in decades. Gov. Greg Abbott put all of Texas’ 254 counties under a disaster declaration as the state has been hammered with a series of major and historic winter storms. The reasons for the collapse of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid are still being debated, and it’s certain that there is more than one cause and more information will come out.But one of the most contested issues is the role wind generation has played. Prior to the onset...

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on Wednesday said coal and natural gas – NOT frozen wind turbines – caused the power grid failure in this week’s Texas cold snap. Texas got hit with a rare cold snap that spanned to the southern part of the state and the power grids gave out. .... Snip.... Millions of Texans suffered blackouts partly due to the frozen wind turbines. Psaki said reports suggesting renewables caused the power grid failure in Texas are inaccurate, rather it was renewables that came in to save the day. “Numerous reports show that it was failure in...

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas emphasized the need for people to reduce energy use... As temperatures dropped to near-record lows Sunday, electricity operators warned that demand could overwhelm the state’s power grid and force rotating power outages. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which operates the state’s power grid, emphasized the need for Texans to reduce energy consumption. “We are experiencing record-breaking electric demand due to the extreme cold temperatures that have gripped Texas ... At the same time, we are dealing with higher-than-normal generation outages due to frozen wind turbines ... If power reserves fell too much, an...

Day 321 Of The Dictatorship Of COVID-19, Day 321 Of America And The World Held Hostage Back in 1979 Americans taken hostage in Iran and ABC News coining the phrase "America Held Hostage" as illustrated in this first of many late night special reports... And here we are in 2021 the Dictatorship of COVID-19 and Americans held hostage like Gayle Meyer... Don McLean's "American Pie" was all over the radio back in 1972 and many phrases in that song including "The Day The Music Died". It will be 62 years ago this Wednesday "The Day The Music Died" February 3,...