Wind power generation, in addition to the usual praise we hear, has its own flaws. Because of the instability of natural wind power, wind power and photovoltaic power rely on solar energy, both need to look to the heavens to eat. As a result, it often needs to be used in conjunction with thermal, hydro or nuclear power, all three types of electricity that can produce a steady and precisely controlled amount of electricity before it can be used by humans. That's one reason it's been nicknamed "garbage electricity."
But if that's all it takes, wind power still has a lot going for it. But recently there is a voice that Europe and the United States are phasing out wind power. Why? Is there any disadvantage to wind power that we don't know about?
Wind turbines in the woods
Before we get to that, let's look at some of the reasons why wind power has become so popular in recent years. After the Industrial Revolution, the exploitation and utilization of fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, increased dramatically, causing a rapid increase in global greenhouse effect. In contrast to conventional energy sources, wind does not produce carbon dioxide pollution and other greenhouse gases. While greatly reducing air pollution, it also avoids excessive dependence on fossil energy.
In terms of reserves, it can be called inexhaustible, inexhaustible. In our country alone, the wind energy reserve can be developed, is as high as 1 billion kilowatt. Even in 2021, the country's installed power generation capacity is only 2.3 gigawatts. Among them, the installed capacity of grid-connected wind power is about 300 million kW. With the continuous improvement of wind power generation technology, its construction cycle is constantly shortened, and the construction work can be completed in a relatively short time. And can be put into use in a relatively short period of time to meet the local demand for electricity. And the installed scale is very flexible, each region can according to their own wind energy reserves, to local conditions, to choose the right wind power generation device.
Given all the advantages of wind power, why do some Western researchers consider it a health hazard and even claim to ban it?
A weakness few people know about
Wind power, in addition to its own instability, has other lesser-known drawbacks. And one of the things we observe on a daily basis is the effect on birds. The huge blades of wind turbines spin at high speeds during operation, and this, of course, poses a threat to all kinds of birds that fly in their path.
Secondly, wind power generation will also bring about some damage to the ecological environment, including the commonly known soil erosion. In places with great potential for wind power development, contiguous wind farms are often formed. Most of these wind power facilities will be built on top of mountains or ridges, in order to get the most out of the wind. And in the process of its construction, the amount of work on the base is very large, and this action will greatly destroy the original vegetation. However, the recovery ability of vegetation in mountainous area is lower than that in plain area, which requires a longer time span. In the process of its restoration, it is possible to have the common phenomenon of soil erosion.
And wind power can have an effect on our bodies that we can't even see. This is because wind power generation generates a lot of low frequency noise during operation. Living under the influence of this low-frequency noise for years has a big impact on our bodies. So we can notice that wind power facilities are built far away from areas of human activity to reduce their impact on us.
In the researchers' simulations, wind power also had an impact on the climate. When wind passes through the blades, it causes them to rotate, and the kinetic energy generated by the rotation of the blades is used by the generators inside them to generate electricity. This conversion of energy naturally affects the natural patterns of energy exchange and recycling, which further changes the weather environment around wind power facilities. But in the real world, the results of this kind of simulation experiment are not accurate. Factors such as environment, terrain, and wind equipment can greatly affect the results of this experiment.
The scale of wind power's impact on reality can also be seen in action in Europe. Europe is adding new installations every year to drive wind power growth. As a result, the share of wind power generated in Europe has risen year after year, reaching a peak of 24% of Europe's total electricity.