Renewable Energy Has Advanced Exponentially: We Want to Honor Your Work

Wind Turbines and Whooping Cranes: Going Soft on Soft Energy (politically correct environmental damage)
by Tom Tanton
July 26, 2011

The Federal agency charged with protecting endangered species under the Endangered Species Act is evaluating a plan to allow a 200-mile wide corridor for wind energy development from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. The draft land-based guidelines–made ostensibly to avoid, minimize, and compensate for effects to fish, wildlife, and their habitats" — represent one more example of overt and destructive favoritism for an industry that already benefits from fat tax subsidies and mandated market purchases.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Plan

The plan by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) would allow for killing endangered whooping cranes. The government's environmental review will consider a permit, sought by 19 energy developers, which would allow constructing turbines (over 300 feet tall) and associated transmission lines on non-federal lands in nine states from Montana to the Texas coast, encroaching on the migratory route of the cranes.

The permit from the FWS would allow the projects to "take" an unspecified number of endangered species. Under the Endangered Species Act, "take" is just the euphemism for killing or injuring an endangered species. The government can issue permits to kill or injure listed species with no penalties or risks of lawsuits to developers if they agree to craft conservation plans.


http://www.masterresource.org/2011/07/wind-turbines-whooping-cranes/

You sure have come a long way but "honor"? For what? Raping the land across the entire USA?
LADWP is under investigation for the Pine Tree wind farm killing of Golden Eagles. Open the link here and take a good look at the chick. Be humble. Put grating over those propellers or stop and do what other scientists do, research and development to get the best of breed solutions, not this junk the social media is selling as genuine technology.

http://www.greenerenergybuys.com/?p=1591
Fish, Wildlife Services plan: http://www.nossaman.com/7815

Hi
Where you have birds of pray in the mountains , you also have good running water ,stream,rapids and rivers . With my new technology all these places can produce far more renewable energy that all the useless HAWT ( wind turbines ) TAWT is a new concept Tangential axis wet turbines . That can be static on the river bank piers ,brake waters etc if the level is controlled by weirs . Or floating on a raft type hull that can work in shallow water or mega tidal . The kite foil blades work like oars but with a down and across the flow . Using a double tack like in sailing . At the end of the down stream path ,the tangent angle then lifts the kite/ foil out on the capstan oar like spokes . They then return up to the start point in the air ,taking the advantage of the difference between Air and water density . 800> ! Also water never stops ,tidal on a grid or old man river .

Why not help our charity develop this new principle , all the money spent in bla bla bla is a waste,if you have a machine that works better than the wind monsters .Then things will soon change and you will save our birds and fish >let the rivers run free.


all the best Ken Upton Bioneer 4paz .charity Espana www.cyberlifeboat.org

Ps this new principle of kenape REH is better and more versatile than my old designs that Atlantis copied and have working in Scotland .That they claim makes the cleanest and cheapest KWH in the world .

Sandcanyongal...what form of energy do you propose is harmless to various nits and gnats you hold precious, Don't get me wrong, I'm not from the "if its green let it scream" camp, but be reasonable. Give me a power production method and I will give you a negative consequence. Our very existence on this earth affects the environment.

Ken, didn't hear words like economic, bankable, efficient in you description. We don't need a new form of renewable energy, we need to get the frame work right for the ones we have. Anyone one can open a physics text book and find a way of producing energy. Its a no brainier. Trying to make it efficiently and bankable...now there is a challenge.

hi John ,
All I can say> is go wave your hands in the air ,then in a bucket of water ( take note and time factor). Study the basics of aero foils , hydrofoils ,kite fight ,density , time factors ,distance and gravity and a learn bit about boat building. Also the important part birds of prey >play in out eco systems . Then start taking about e economic, bankable, efficient etc . It was the bankers, who copied my first kenape ideas and are making a fortune from them right now >> So I must have got it right with those inventions (All on the net)
. You will find this new basic principle experiment on You tube and if all goes well >a car top size prototype by the end of the month will be running . I would not waste our time and energy and little funds our charity has with something that was not better than my older work . Eureka findlay media >search Ken Upton .here a just a few ideas to do it better ,that our team has . But please tell me how ? to put a economic price on a lost national harvest and the after effects > like when the Voles took over Spain ,when the wind turbines upset the balance by killing our birds of pray just a few years ago .Or the price of the BP oil spill in the USA and now the Shell in Africa. Then we can talk about the words you don't hear! how can I state these sort of things without R&D on this new environmental friendly working idea. That's why we could do with some good funding, sponsors etc to develop this new concept ,that will help save some of the wonderful things nature needs to keep her balance ,so we can stay and enjoy our planet earth . This new principle will even work OK on Mars ,now we know it has flowing water. Ps its almost silent and no eyesores.The bigger craft can be wild life islands ,heliports , hotels , channel stadium roofs and quite a lot of other uses will come as it develops.

Did anyone take the time to look over either of the document links? Bankable, economic??? Wind and solar are only bankable and economic for the companies that build and operate them.

I live in the Tehachapi Pass and see hundreds of turbines out my doors and windows. There have been 3 turbine fires since May 2011. The risk of fire is high too in heavy forest that is inaccessible. Fires spreads fast and far in windy areas. In the last 6 years since I've lived here there has been a fire caused by Lehigh cement plant, Piute fire, Rosamond fire, Old West Ranch fire. Our community of Sand Canyon is so suseptible to a massive fire it could wipe out all the homes. We don't know how many people live here but there are 270 mailboxes with only one way in or out of our canyon. My life is more important to me than the wind company or you or lighting up Los Angeles. I saw the Station fire (Angeles Crest) shortly after it started, saw it on the way back home to Tehachapi at 5 am the next morning and my husband and I drove to LA a week later through through the Crest Highway. All that was left of the forest was chin high stubs that used to be pine trees. What started the fire? The firemen, back starting small fires for fire prevention, gone wild. Economy? Right. I encourage any of you to be dumb enough to buy a home here.

My answer to the energy problem is to do research and development to identify and develop technologies that are roof top. where I can go to my local big box and buy a unit for $500, take it home, plug it in and I have power. The grid is nothing more than enslavement to high monthly energy bills.

I was born and raised in cities, probably like most of you. People understand and relate to their surroundings, many times, with absolutely no understanding of nature. Movies conjur up forests as nothing more than boggie men, mountain lions, bears and snakes. The water from watershed from places like where I live, allow people to water their lawns and take showers. The bees pollinate fruit trees. Birds spread seed for new trees to grow. Their poop is the fertilizer for them to take hold. This is elementary science and the cycle of life. Raptors eat carion (sp?), dead animals, mice and small animals. Where turbines are located, there are no raptors. Mice and rat populations thrive along with their associated diseases - contagious viral diseases, typhus and Lyme disease for example. I know a person with Lyme disease. His life is a mess. What I'm saying here is that 'renewable' is an inaccurate word for wind and solar.

The renewable energy buffs forget the raw material mining and manufacturing energy used to make turbines and the bill of materials for "renewable energy."
335 tons of steel
4.7 tons of copper
13 tons of fiberglass
3 tons of aluminum
1,200 tons of reinforced concrete
This is from a Vestas V90 site.
Aside from materials is the energy used by equipment, energy used for transportation, energy used in the manufacture of the component parts, mor transportation for assembly and delivery by boat, rail and trucks to their destination. There is site preparation using massive equipment to move earth.

sandcanyongal...I don't know where to start.
What form of power are you using now. I bet it comes from the bid bad grid you despise. I bet the electrons comes from polluting fossil fuel power stations that kill directly and indirectly more animals than renewable energy (wind, solar or wave) would ever do. Or possibly it comes from nuclear power...do I really have to comment about that! Whats your thoughts on Hydro power...any dead fish there!
We have wind farms in Australia that have three full time observers that look out for birds (yes standing or sitting there with binoculars). If they stray too close the the wind farm is shut down until they pass. This curtailment (and by that I mean switching the turbines off not killing bird).This is allowed for when modelling the economics of the project so it does not come as a financial impact. Before the project is allowed to proceed many studies and approvals are needed. Bird and bat studies, environmental impact studies and flora studies.
You make no mention of the void of wild life around the coal mines that feed the power plants. You make no mention of the effect on the environment to have billions of liters of hot water discharged into the lakes and rivers from the cooling system of power plants.
But mostly you make no mention of the number of birds that are killed when they fly into the closed windows of ill informed bloggers as they sit at their computers.

Ken my apologies. I have followed your work and admire what you do. Put my comments down to a hard day. I am in the business of owning and building wind farms so I guess am too attuned to what it takes to get these projects off the ground. It comes down to project returns. Unfortunately the reality is that someone has to finance these projects and unfortunately banks take a view of risk. I don't like it but I cant change it. Wind projects get bank loans because the banks now understand them. PV projects the same. CSP people find it hard because there are no two plants the same and the banks don't have a template for them.
I know the challenges that new technology has to get funding. Our company has developed a graphite based energy storage system that stores energy thermally. We are getting our first project off the ground now on King Island (off the coast of Tasmania)but it has been a hard six year slog. There is less interest now by venture capitalist to support emerging renewable technology. They have had their fingers burnt in supporting innovation that was not able to get momentum, after which economies of scale could take over.
Ken I applaud your work and wish you all the best in your attempts.

Why is degradation the only way business is able to work with the public? I live in the Tehachapi Pass and hear the cumulative noise of wind turbines coming through my dual paned windows, ventilation and cannot step into my garage at times because it is not as well insulated as the home structure...and you're indignant that I have another opinion that does not agree with yours? I have watched entire communities run out by companies that lured absentee property owners to lease their properties. Worse, they waited for the economy to bottom feed on foreclosures...and you're indigant?

John. I will answer a few of your questions and concerns about other bad practices. First. I did work on the top floor of a business building where birds flew into the windows. It is horrifying to hear. However, the very sharp building manager had the windows fitted with anti reflection materials. There were solutions to prevent this. How does this apply to open propeller wind turbines though? Has the industry had an epiphany and decide to cover the 200 mph at the tip blades or change the design to make them quiet? I just don't get the finger pointing that the other guy is letting bad things happen so it's OK for you to do it too.

Hi Sancanyougal .The reason you have Wind turbine and solar, basically has nothing to do with the real need for renewable energy . It is to keep the old money boys happy,if we have good constant wet energy systems ,then there is no need for the massive grid back up Nuclear ,coal,oil production is not needed in such a vast scale . So the bankers will only finance the two main and weakest alternatives . Wind and solar which do not work a lot of the time and are very poor investment for the general pubic . The noise from the wind turbines gets near the body frequency and make life intolerable . Bankers , old and new money people does not have and can afford not to live near HAWT production . Most countries in the world have massive resources in Tidal and river REH which are not used. Why ,if it is used >then its goodbye to all the old money systems and a new global balance will come . Our old systems are now collapsing ,so lets hope new technology will be funded and developed . But first I think the world system will have to change and we have a long way to go. Read a nice little old book called the Sugar Blues by William Duffy ,that was banned for years . This will give you the answers to many of your???? Most of the public just do not understand how our present systems work. That is where the problem is not the production and silly out of date energy show for the public.As any good physics, engineers, bioneer in dynamics will tell you . Wing foils (turbine blades) in the air or water work with the same laws ,What makes the difference is the density and time factor .Water has a density of about 800 times more than the air (wind)which is controlled by the sun . Which only works during the day and water also effects that ( clouds ,storms etc ) Now sing 'Old man river 'in the bath,wave your hands in the air and then in the bath water . You will soon understand ,what most people just do not understand . Its old money!not dynamics that make the present REH.

Ken please, you have read way too many conspiracy theory books. Banks lend money on projects they can make money on. For them to do otherwise is irresponsible. One aspect they consider is risk. To minimize their risk the conduct a due diligence with considers all risk issues. Unfortunately the only two renewable technologies that are mature are wind and PV. This is because both these technologies have been around long enough for the technologies to be understood and for the risks to be understood. Ken I have studied the physics of wind and water and I am sure anybody reading these blogs would have as well, so please don't treat us as if we have propellers on our heads. I don't know if you have had to maintain equipment in a marine environment. I have. Its expensive. At the end of the day you have to look at the O&M costs and make a decision. As you are proposing new technology with no installed history, others will take a view of the O&M costs on the project lifetime. Large scale projects usually need a 20 year life to give paybacks so you really have to have some hard facts to convince people you have taken everything into consideration in your financial analysis. If this doesn't happen the project will not get up no matter how brilliant your idea is. You may see this as a conspiracy by the "old money boys"...whoever these people are, and if you do I feel sorry for you. Sorry because you have good ideas that need commercialization but you seem to feel that there is a conspiracy out to stop you. Put up a commercial proposition and you will get your technology underway. Don't and you wont. Its as simple as that. You can complain all you want about the short sight people who make these decisions, but stop and imagine you are in their shoes for a minute. People with the money have every sort of freak-show come through the doors looking for money. You need criteria to evaluate projects. Get to know what they are. Good Luck with your projects

hi John /
First on a public blog,not all the readers know the in and outs of the subject ,but are keen to learn . So for many of the fellow readers ,as a teacher I try to explain the way I see things ,in layman's terms >that they hopefully understand .Most days I have several volunteers from all over the world and with years of practice I finds its the best way .Many of these have there soft degrees and other professions. And have no jobs . One of the reasons is the so called experts in banking ,have screwed up our present systems. Our governments lie ,take the case of this week end . Drilling in the Artic. This has been on the oldboys plans for years ,they have just built the biggest drilling/boat rig ever . But cannot drill . balls they now just pull the right strings and the white house jumps and signs ( take a look at the Greenpeace site on this subject .
I design and build boats ,I try only to use composites and other materials that last. This is what we should save our oil etc for ,not 4X4 and powerboats that kill our seas .My peers in this field of r&d are here http://www.ayrs.org/ayrsaddr.htm These are some of the worlds best.I am in the Kite and wing group ,we have given the world kite surfing ,pull the biggest ships(Kiteship) and I am considered by them good at making rotary kite power .So I may sound like a silly old fart at times , but we do it. And publish freely then others can use it ,make it better etc etc .And I still say .you have got it all wrong. But ?

ken-upton-28183
Unable to find a write up on a researcher, Italy(?), and his work with uncombusted coal in the manufacture of carbon composites.

There are all sorts of ways to develop power better than 500 foot tall turbines. Notice there is no movement toward other designs of industrial turbines that are less intrusive on the land or create a zero impact on the rest of the environment. Science works differently from corporations. The scientist looks for solutions. Had R&D been conducted to identify best of breed solutions outside of the influence of corporations, lobbyists and profiteers off-grid units would be rolling into our big box stores as reasonably priced plug and play electricity. There's never time to do it right the first time but...

Using natural resources like water can be useful at local locations for light up, and produce electricity. Sorry but turbines and solar on an industrial scale from remote areas is for growth potential in those areas. The draft EIRs promote this. There is no discussion about limiting population growth on the table yet but it's on its way. Man is down to 0.5 acres of arable land per person.

All,

I am a recipient of the 2010 IREC innovation award and I am very displeased that no one has "honored" the great work that IREC has done (especially in regards to this award) by digressing into a series of diatribes which are completely off subject - please exchange emails and continue among yourselves or the audience will have to take this discussion as nothing more than a series of reactive pontifications.

I work in the "Heart of the Billion Dollar Coalfields" on community RE and sustainable development and was HONORED to receive IREC's award!!

Here is some of our work:http://www.dailyyonder.com/start-reach-sustainable/2011/08/02/3457

Keep up the great work Jane!!!!

Eric...thanks for the kind words, and I agree with you—I was taken by surprise at the tone of some of the responses to this post. IREC's been recognizing innovation and creativity in the renewable energy space for almost 20 years. Truth is, it's remarkable people like you, unhesitatingly committed to a better world, that continue to hearten and inspire. Thanks for all you and others do, Eric. Keep up the exemplary work.

Jane, There is certainly more than one opinion about putting our world into the hands finance and deregulation. The world, the U.S. and Tehachapi, where I live are still reeling from the last 2 bubbles: tech and housing. At their heels is now the renewable energy bubble, a visibly destructive method of getting off of fossil fuels. For people who have spent their entire lives in cities, all they can related to is their postage stamp sized housing, without ever considering the bigger picture and horrifying damage that takes place.

I remember one of my first trips to the great outdoors and ruining a beautiful pair of shoes that were completely inappropriate for the day in the woods. After many years I cherish nature and the life it gives us all. I protect it the best I can againt the rape I am watching.

Hi:

Sandc... you know really, if you want to look at something really devastating that is about to happen, look no further than the Keystone pipeline for the Alberta Tar sands and the Arctic drilling. The down side of the wind turbine fallout compared to those, "about to happen" big corporate agendas is like comparing a dust devil to the Joplin cat 5!!! SO if you want to bitch about something that has really devastating possibilities, look in those two directions!!!!

.....Bill

I guess if you dont think poluting fossil power generation is a bad thing for the enviroment, then discussions about renewable energy in any form will fall on deaf ears. Once we accept that the enviroment will benifit from a reduction and possible elimination of fossil fuel generation then we have a starting point. The next question we shoud pose is in what form will this renewable energy take. If we started with a clean slate I am not sure we would end up at too different a point from where we are now. The problem seems to be many people want a clean energy form, its just that they dont want it in their back yard. If every body takes that view, and they are entitled to, we will never change the status quo and we will have forever more poluting energy. Someting has to give. Its a bit like wanting you cake and eating it as well.
There is no one renewable solution that will solve the renewable energy problem. We need massive amounts to displace fossil generation. This means everyone has to give a little for the long term good of us all and for future generations.
Wind is an immediately available form of renewable energy that can help. To stop wind power in its track now is not going to happen. Those opposing wind generation for what ever reason (and its usually the NIMBY principle) need to come up with a better solution. By better solution I don't mean opening up a physics text book and finding a way to generate renewable energy that will take 20 years to commercialize on the scale we need. I mean an alternative that can be deployed now. Of course if you don't think we have an immediate problem, and you wont if all you do is look out over the rolling hill with the sun shining and the birds singing saying to your self "my god this is great", then nothing will be done. Ever.

At some point there has to be a common ground. First. The world is NOT getting off fossil fuels. In my opinion the companies are gearing up to drill, mine and frack, tar and whatever else in the U.S. rather than buy it from other countries. If someone disagrees please say why?

I'm against industrial wind and solar or anything that damages the land like these technologies. I live near them. I can get out of my car, walk up to a truck and touch a propeller blade when the trucks are parked. Here near Tehachapi, the turbines are in tight clusters, not spread out. Zoning allows them 500 feet from a property. I'm not battling the technology or new composite propeller blades, I'm against the noise, night glare from the white and red beacons and the permanent damage to all the sq. miles where they're being located. The land dries up at the ground around them so nothing grows. The rest are round - about 10% of the total acreage. They're putting up 116 of them on a single project. An investment company has applied to put 22-30 476 footers within 1/2 mile from my house. Of course I'm not welcoming them with open arms. No one would.

I'm not sure why people in your industry choose to ignore that the side effects of putting them in is unacceptably damaging. It is not a matter of the technolgy.

My husband is a California attorney, aerospace scientist (r&d) and physicist. I work for him. We are fighting to keep our property and countryside habitable. We don't drink city water with chemicals. Ours comes from mother earth out of a well. No mercury, pesticides, carcinogens.

Poorly planned and developed wind farms are wrong. Plain and simple. If I got drunk and decided to hammer a nail but instead I hit my thumb, I think it would be a pretty bad idea to ban all hammers. You are right in saying that some (and I don't know the number) wind farm developers have made poor choices when it comes to their developments. I don't know what the rules are like in the US, but in Australia the development process requires that all things you have mentioned be taken into consideration and only after all the studies have been conducted and agreed to will the wind farm be permitted to proceed. May I suggest that rather than a blanket "all wind farms are bad so lets ban them" attitude you shift to a how do we make sure that developments are planed so that they dont affect people in the way you find undesirable.
As for the comment "First. The world is NOT getting off fossil fuels" well this is just wrong. Of all the new generation built in the world last year, the majority was renewable. The trend is clear. The world is shifting from fossil to renewable. The only question that remains is how fast. I would encourage you to make sure that wind farm developments are done properly and in sympathy with the environment just as I would expect that if you would take this position to make the fossil fuel power produces do the same.

One of the blogger wanted a nice simple box that made REH . It got me thinking ,my new floating type Tawt principle is based on a raft ,like the pacific proa with kite foils taking some of the REH from the passing water flow , in the box funnel channel between the hull and out rigger . We have are now making prototype with a longer outrigger . With a cover to keep the ducks etc out of the works and mesh grill to stop anything .Like small tree branches .plastic .old boots not suitable for the campo etc Going in and jamming up the rotating kite/foils in the narrow part of the flow channel . The smallish box raft is designed to leave the bank at a tangent to its floating work station , and with the cable to the bank , then out come clean REH . The prototype is starting to look good ,will put it on You tube when its working in a local river with the sound effects of the river noises . Not like the pressure blade noise ,as it passes the HAWT tower that drives you nuts and kills our birds of pray . That play a very important part in our ecosystems .Anyone who would like to help our charity in a positive way ,is always welcome . I am glad others can see the damage being done ,to get oil etc . Mother nature locked it up for a reason ,and using it is destroying our world . KIGS -

So now dear fellow blogger , you have a simple Renewable energy box .Tie up and toss into the local stream .Out comes non stop electric .The ducks will have to nest on top ( that fitting will be extra)

First of all, let me extend a strong admiration to anyone who has made this issue of renewable energy a focus in their lives. Without the ability to forward think, mankind would probably today be a historical event on this planet. But I have some serious questions. Please understand, I am not an advocate of nuclear energy. On the contrary. but if we are depleting fossil fuel energies as quickly as some claim, can we depend on wind turbines and solar panels to replace all forms of fossil fuels in the future or is this a pipe dream?