Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
the government has demonstrated a propensity to continue to support
wind power development.
he only specks of trouble on an otherwise cloudless landscape relate to
concerns expressed by avian special interest groups over bird mortality and
the existence of NIMBY opposition in some locales, particularly ofshore.
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As wind power capacity continues to expand, wind farms will become more
aesthetically invasive and government oicials can expect ampliied public
resistance—a challenge that needs to be efectively managed. In a litigious
society such as that of the United States, mismanagement of opposition
to wind power could result in the same legal blockades that nuclear power
providers have faced for decades.
7.5.2 Economic
→
Political
he emergent commercial viability of wind power has had a profound efect
on political behavior. Although there will always be a degree of political
resistance toward a transition away from coal-ired power in states that
are endowed with coal resources, wind power is now seen as a technology
that is capable of both enhancing domestic energy security and mitigating
greenhouse gas emissions, in an economically efective manner. In the 20%
wind scenario put forth by the US Department of Energy, the cost of achiev-
ing 20% contribution from wind power, when passed on to retail consum-
ers, has been estimated at about US$0.06/kWh or about $0.50 per month
per household. he rationale for supporting an expansion of wind power is
politically irresistible.
his is especially true given the realization that wind power has become
a major industry, employing over 75,000 workers. For evidence that the
government views the wind industry as strategically important, one needs
only to look to the actions taken by the US Commerce Department in July
2012. Responding to evidence that China had been dumping steel towers
into the US market, the Commerce Department imposed punitive tarifs on
steel towers from China, claiming that these activities were undermining
the economic health of domestic irms.
On the other hand, there is also evidence that political resistance is growing
in regard to subsidizing wind power to the extent that it has been subsidized
in the past. Critics can point to an EIA report indicating, in 2010, that the
wind power industry in the United States was on the receiving end of nearly
US$5 billion in federal support for electricity generation. his compares to
US$1.36 billion in support for coal, US$2.8 billion in support for natural gas
and other fossil fuel liquids, and US$2.5 billion in support for nuclear.
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