Carl & Malcolm's 1998 California Trip - Page 5

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One of the most interesting parts of the trip to California was visiting the 'Wind Farm' near Palm Springs. We took the tour ($15 US/person) which takes you a little ways out into the wind farm. The guide was excellent - probably one of the best I've ever listened to on a tour of this type. We learned about the potential for harvesting energy from the wind. Apparently it's estimate that about 20% of the electric power needed by the US could be provided by the wind. The cost to produce electricity this way is about 1% of the cost for a kilowatt of electricity produced by a nuclear plant. Other than byproducts from the construction of the turnbines and towers, there are virtually no waste products - which certainly can't be said for nuclear or coal-generated power.

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We were informed that NASA has done a wind survey of the entire planet and the valley at Palm Springs is considered to be the windiest place in the world. Located in a pass between two desert areas, the wind is almost always blowing between them. It goes one direction all day and the other direction all night. The newer towers will be almost silent. Most of the existing ones make a whine that sounds like a jet engine. They were about to begin erecting the 4th generation towers the week after we were there. The tallest towers right now are 150 feet tall. The new ones will top out at 300 feet tall. At present they have over 4,000 wind turbines in operation.

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Lying on the ground is a turbine blade from one like those you see to the right. They are about 50 feet long and weigh a couple tons. Although precision engineered from fibreglass, you don't want to be around when these things start falling apart.

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Private business is starting to get into the wind power industry. Patagonia (environmentally-conscious makers of clothing and outdoor equipment) have purchased their own turbine and will be generating power and selling it back to themselves. Wind-generated electricity is so cheap that it makes good economic sense for businesses to get into it. Any excess power they can sell to the grid. The people running the tour said they tried to get a local hotel to take this approach. They could end up getting their power 'for free' and even turn a profit in the long run. But no interest so far.

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