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Will Wind Power Change Earth's Climate?

lommer writes "The Globe and Mail is currently running an article on a recent wind power study. A group of Canadian and American scientists has modelled the effects of introducing massive amounts of wind farms into North America and have come up with surprising results. While still having only 1/5th the impact of fossil fuels, wind power will still adjust the earth's climate with the equatorial regions warmed while the arctic grows colder. Could this be a boon for the nuclear lobby, or is this just further evidence for a diversified power-generating system?"

2 of 883 comments (clear)

  1. Re:my thoughts by MtViewGuy · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    You are definitely correct.

    I'm likely going to get modded WAY down for this, but several commentators have said that the last refuge of socialists is in the environmental movement. I've noticed that to be very true especially in the San Francisco Bay Area, where environmentalists and far-Left liberals almost tend to be a mutually inclusive group.

  2. Re:Probably not gonna be significant... by wass · · Score: 1, Flamebait
    Interesting troll ... I've got a degree in atmospheric physics

    Great, then please provide numbers to scientifically and quantitatively prove the effect of windfarms is negligible. Just because you flat out say so doesn't make it true. Justify it, show us your degree is worthwhile. Or are you the real troll here, pretending to know a discipline that you really don't?

    By definition the jet has high shear, and a tiny bit of turbulence miles below is really just a grain of sand on the beach to it.. Give me numbers, or your atmospheric degree is worthless. You are perhaps the only person in this thread (that is if you're not a troll) justified in doing so. I'm not trolling, I'm begging you for numbers.

    Sure there's an effect, it is just so small in a practical sense that it sums to near zero.

    Have you ever learned order of magnitude estimations? Justify why it sums to 'near zero'.

    forests absorb *way* more energy than a few thousand windmills ever could.

    Numbers please.

    Of course if you do a study where you fill all of Canada with windmills spaced every 100m you start to increase drag.. so what- it isn't a realistic scenario.

    Of course that's not realistic. Can you please explain the effects quantitatively with a realistic number of windmills?

    You've got a theoretical and small problem from wind power. You've got a actual and large problem from fossil fuels. Therefore keep the status quo! Brilliant.

    That's great, I've never claimed to keep the fossil fuel status quo, but thanks for putting words in my mouth. Basically you claim to have a degree in atmospheric physics, yet you didn't provide one scientifically sound argument, just a bunch of handwaving. And you still say I'm spewing crap, even though you acknowledge that all of my points will actually have at least some effect. I've never claimed the effect is non-negligible, I've pointed out POSSIBLE effects. If your degree in atmospheric physics is worthwhile you should be able to provide order-of-magnitude quantitative estimates to easily show my arguments amount to a negligible global effect.

    I've brought up arguments and not made bold statements on them. You bring up counterarguments, yet you think they are absolute proof against my arguments. WHO'S THE REAL TROLL HERE?

    Anyway, I do hope you're not a troll and can show it's neglible. I think wind power is a great idea, I'm not fully convinced it's 100% perfectly green as many others outrightly claim it is.

    --

    make world, not war