Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
into existing slack grid capacity to balance supply luctuations. Moreover,
in most nations, 20% contribution from wind power is generally achiev-
able without necessitating added back-up capacity through strategic site
planning, strategic management of the electricity system's fuel mix, and
improved interconnections with neighboring grids. Much higher levels of
wind power integration are possible in nations that boast high wind power
potential, high capacity in peak-load technologies (i.e., hydropower, natu-
ral gas-ired power), or the capacity to interconnect with neighboring grids.
We are already seeing evidence of wind power contribution levels reach-
ing up to 40% in some regions without destabilizing the grid or adversely
afecting electricity prices. In short, most nations can achieve far greater
levels of wind power integration than currently exist.
At higher capacity levels, impediments to expanding wind power capac-
ity appear to stem more from social barriers than economic barriers.
Economically, even if a degree of added generation capacity must be added
to permit greater levels of wind power integration, the costs are estimated
to be negligible—certainly far less than the unaccounted for external costs
associated with fossil fuel electricity generation.
9
Yet overcoming social
barriers to achieving higher levels of wind power saturation appear to be
far less tractable than overcoming economic barriers. As both the German
and Danish case studies suggest, there appears to be a level of wind power
saturation beyond which communities begin to experience dissonance
associated with the physical invasiveness of so many wind power turbines.
As wind power capacity continues to expand in nations around the world,
social resistance to wind power may wind up being the predominant vari-
able constraining development. Nevertheless, as outlined in this topic, by
cobbling together technological, economic, and political strategies aimed at
attenuating public resistance, the sociocultural boundaries that frame the
upper limits of wind power capacity can likely be expanded.
11.3 POLICY IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING ESSENTIALS
To this point, this study has been clear in explicating the types of STEP
variables which should be proactively managed during the formulation of
wind power development policy. However, efective wind power develop-
ment policy is dependent on far more than efective policy formulation.
Once formulated, policy must be efectively implemented and monitoring
strategies need to be developed to ensure that the implementation process
is achieving the desired results. herefore, it would be remiss to conclude
this study without addressing implementation and monitoring. Insights
