Wind Power and the UK

The UK has the best potential in Europe for generating power from wind. It seems to have been complementary with nuclear power although North Sea reserves have also played an important part in the equation. When nuclear power was favoured by the government, wind power was neglected but now, hopefully, the priorities should have changed.

Using wind turbines (the modern equivalent of the windmill) and grouping them into wind farms, about one fifth of the current electricity requirements could be generated in the windy parts of the countryside alone. This proportion is about the same as that generated by nuclear power.

In 2001 there were about 60 wind farms (approaching 900 turbines). They are environmentally very friendly, producing no toxic residues or environmental damage. They have no fossil fuel costs whatsoever and although the technology was then fairly costly it was falling and will continue to fall further with increasing developments and investment.

Wind farms are well suited to being sited on agricultural land where (arguably) they do not appear to cause any problems for farm or wild animals. The only objections seem to have come from residents nearby, some of whom feared the constructions would be ugly and noisy, ineffective and dangerous to birds but even amongst locals, not everyone shares that view. An organisation fervently opposing every proposal for turbines is Country Guardian (see our page on the Natural Environment for more details). Getting planning permission in the face of such opposition is a major obstacle to developments. One of the partial solutions to this particular objection, is to site the wind farms away from inhabited regions and offshore siting is a good example with potential significance. Although the costs would probably be higher offshore than on land it should be possible to more than double the generating capacity of exclusive countryside siting.

It is historical fact that previous governments have knowingly discarded wind power as a source of energy. However, as the initiative for renewable energy sources gathers momentum under pressures to reduce carbon emissions, the priorities are changing and we expect to see some significant and positive changes in the near future. Investment in Nuclear Energy was curtailed in 1998 and wind power benefited as a result, now it is approaching the stage where it should become commercially viable. Having said this, it is alarming that the nuclear industry seems to have some special regard in the eyes of politicians; it keeps raising its ugly head and we suspect some hidden agenda.

During the original drafting of this article (Q2, 2001) the UK government (DTI) had announced plans to speed up development in selected coastal sites for offshore wind farms. The initiative was welcomed by Greenpeace and the British Wind Energy Association. We look forward to seeing the progress soon. Unfortunately while the UK has been neglecting the potential it seems to have lost the manufacturing initiative and many turbines are imported, overwhelmingly from Denmark. For example see the link to The Danish Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association on our Alternative Energy page.

At a time of updating this page (26 November 2001), John Vidal and Kirsty Scott writing in The Guardian drew attention to the potential in the Hebridean Island of Lewis. The island is well positioned to take advantage of onshore wind energy and if this one potential is developed it would be, by far, the largest onshore farm in the world and so significant that it alone could make a vast difference to the UK's position in the European clean energy league. From the local point of view it would also provide a major shift in prosperity for a community which is in steady economic and population decline. Lewis is adjacent to Harris (remember Harris Tweed?) and the local economy relies on fish farming, agriculture and tourism and unemployment is high. Part of the project would sensibly involve the laying of a new undersea cable, to connect to the mainland grid, with its attendant costs, but once in place this would create opportunities for other types of clean energy generation (eg offshore wind, wave and tidal power) and the Western Isles could provide an exemplar which could change the popular image of clean energy and expose the economic and social illogicalities of supporting nuclear power. Here's wishing the Scottish Islands a prosperous future and maybe this development could be a watershed for green energy production in the UK as a whole.

And late in 2003 we see that the North Hoyle offshore wind farm (off the NW coast of Wales) is about to start producing up to 60 MW into the national grid (Alok Jha in The Guardian, Life, 20 Nov. 2003). This is the first major offshore farm in British waters but 16 more offshore sites are well under way. The RSPB is concerned in case there is danger for migrating birds and no doubt they will monitor this potential downside. One incidental upside is that the underwater sections of the towers together with the associated vibrations are creating a new and attractive habitat for shellfish and other marine life. Logistically a disadvantage of offshore is that they have to feed into the Grid at its fringes where it is at its weakest. At the same time there are other favourable projects coming on stream, with smaller scale turbines being built on commercial, industrial and tower block sites in urban locations. The turbines are not as efficient as the very large ones at sea but then they can feed into their loads with less transmission loss. Yet another innovation is the promised introduction of domestic sized turbines (750W to 1200W) being developed but as yet unproven (for more information see WindSave on our Alternative Energy page). Personally we are excited by the potential that these hold because they could be spread across the whole country (and yes we would like to have one), however, we shall have to wait and see if they take on.

The British Wind Energy Association provides more facts on wind power; you can visit their site or obtain more details from our 'Alternative Energy' page.