Trees and Windfarms.

By R. Ashok Kumar, B.E.,M.E., Negentropist, Bombay Sarvodaya Mandal, 299,Tardeo Road, Nana Chowk, Mumbai-400007. Tel: 022-23872061. Email: [email protected]

Farmers in the central Indian state of Maharashtra have forced an inquiry after claims the 1,700 windmills in the region have contributed to a drought by chasing away the monsoon rains. Last month protesters tried to sabotage several turbines.

-BBC Report: Ill wind: Six big fears about wind farms. By Jonathan Duffy BBC Online Magazine.16th June 2004.

If trees at a dry biomass density of 30 Kg/sq.m were compared for power flow with a wind farm, both on one square kilometer of land area, for a power input of 1000 MW/km^2, the trees would generate a power of 1800 Megawatts per sq.km(MW/km^2) compared to wind farms of at most 1 MW/km^2. In India, where every square kilometer of land is a priceless resource, occupying three orders of magnitude more land to produce the same amount of power is unjust. Further, the trees use multiple inputs of nature: the soil, the water, the sun, the wind and the outputs of other living creatures in the ecosystem to produce multiple outputs, including raising of the underground water table and the automatic equitable distribution of water in proportion to the density of vegetation and forest produce like fruits and fodder, nuts and fuel and keep the soil fertile and the air pure and keep the ambient temperature conditioned. The trees ensure flood control and drought proofing. The windfarms do not charge the clouds, and by destroying wind velocity contribute to the creation of drought conditions downwind of the windfarm. The windfarms waste all nature except a minor part of wind energy. The following audit of the windfarms and trees highlights these and other aspects(Table).

On account of these features, reverdure is the panacea for improving the overall productivity in a sustainable manner. Living energy use in a kind manner, preserving energy in cycles of use, using the power of the human being and other animals and trees is the need of the hour, for India, not windmills.

Cold Satanic Mills!

Windmills and Gulf Stream Winds of Europe

In the North Atlantic, the Gulf Stream encounters the cold winds coming off the Arctic and across Greenland. As the two meet, heat evaporates out of the Gulf Stream and is carried as steam by the prevailing winds and the Earth’s rotation eastward to Western Europe.

The currents of the ocean are all linked like a Mobius strip in a loop called ‘The Global Ocean Conveyor Belt”. The heat drawn from the Gulf Stream and carried to Europe makes cities like Paris and London much warmer then Montreal or Fargo(North Dakota), even though they are close in latitude. Madrid is much warmer than New York City, though it is on the same latitude. It is in this context that we have to examinethe biggest wind-turbines in the world that are being installed on the English and European coastlines. The local warm wind regime created by the evaporation of the warm waters of the Gulf Stream could be disturbed by the giant windmills.

In the 14^th Century, the UK was deforested and they set their eyes on india for wood for their fleet! And thus began the Imperialist Conquest! It is time the UK and Europe again reforested themselves!

Table Comparison of Trees and Windmill Farms

The audit of trees and windfarms in rainforest areas below brings out how costly to the public at large are windfarms compared to a rainforest in the monsoon drenched areas.Because of the concentration of power in trees, even in rain shadow areas the wind farms are to be eschewed as brought out in the table

R.Ashok Kumar

E-mail ID: [email protected]

Reference: Reforest Mother Earth To Live in the URL:

http://solutiontodroughtsandfloods.rediffblogs.com/

This article on Windfarms is available at the URL:

http://www.geocities.com/rakumra/treesandwindmills.html