Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Although a great number of studies have been conducted worldwide on the impacts
of wind power on wildlife and ecosystems, the relative biological significance of these
impacts remains unclear. The nature of the impact depends hugely on the ecosystem within
which a wind farm is placed and on how vulnerable local species are. It is difficult to
predict bird and bat fatality rates before a wind farm is built. However, it makes sense to
situate wind farms only in areas where birds and bats are scarce, and to use different types
Last but not least, we need to mention the noise impact of wind turbines. A 2-megawatt
turbineproduces105decibelsofsoundatthenacelle.Peopleliving200metresawaywould
experience constant background noise of 50 decibels, roughly equivalent to a never-ending
dinner party on their front lawn. The simple way to solve issues relating to the noise
produced by turbines is to install them at a suitable distance from residential areas.
6.7 The Impacts of Solar Technologies
Solar thermal collectors are based on a very simple technology, and contain mostly
non-hazardous materials such as copper, aluminium, black paint, plastic, and glass. Their
land impact depends on whether they are installed on roofs or on the ground. The only
impact of roof-based plants is visual, and even that is minimal; the panels are almost
indistinguishable from roof windows, and only the storage tank, a large cylindrical
container, is conspicuous. Only in historic city centres can the presence of solar thermal
collectors be reasonably impugned, and for that reason they (or just the external storage
tank) have been banned from many old town centres.
Unless you have installed solar panels, you are unlikely to spot the difference between
a thermal and a PV panel. The tell-tale sign from the ground is the number of panels
on the roof. A couple of thermal panels are often enough to meet a household's heating
requirements, whereas anentire south-facing roofcoveredinPVmaynotmeet itselectrical
needs.
Solar power and heating plants do not produce noise or impact greatly on water supply.
Although quite a lot of water is used to manufacture silicon, installed plants consume only
the water needed to periodically clean the panels. In dusty and dry locations, periodic
Still under debate is the case of thin-film modules, which usually contain cadmium, a
known human carcinogen. BP Solar, a branch of the famous oil company, and the Japanese
Matsushita have ended their production of modules containing cadmium, though probably
