KRudd opens Bungendore Wind Farm

I’ve just come back from a trip out Bungendore way and every wind turbine I could see was dead still.

Having just returned from a weekend in central NSW, it occurred to me that noone seems to whinge when we have windmills to run water bores (ie traditional Australian type windmill), but people bitch about electricity generating windmills. Curious. Frankly, I think the NIMBYs need to STFU and get over it – it’s a top idea.

Spain and Portugal both have some of the largest wind energy capacity in Europe. Most are located in mostly sparsely populated areas, so the NIMBYs are catered for.

It’s quite an impressive sight to see when driving the Portguese coast or across the Spanish plains. Australia should be a perfect location for this kind of thing – solar energy too once we figure out the storage issues.

Unfortunately if the proposed CPRS is any indication, we will be addicted to coal – or at least propping up the coal industry – for a long time. Why we are so afraid of re-tooling inefficient or dying industries is beyond me. No pain, no gain. Instead of propping up cars or coal, think about the new industries = new wealth and work opportunities.

Australia should be a leader in renewable energy but we don’t seem to want to be.

I stood under one of these yesterday here in North Germany. Beleive me they are bigger and scarier to stand under than what they look like from a distance. Where we stood at the tower base, it takes about 8 adults arm to arm to link around tower base. The total weight of the average size turbine is 70t (internet). The average tower height of the turbines here are 80m with a rotor span of between 45-60m, depending on area. The rotors are set to a max rotating speed, but can get up to 320km/hr on some models.Standing under one yesterday, it seemed like the rotors were turning way faster than some of the cars that pass us on the auto bahns at around 180-200km/h. The model used in Germany is the Danish Vesta, the model that is commonly used in Australia (500 in total now I think). As for noise pollution, freinds in our town who live on the towns outskirts nearest to the closest turbine say they can ocassionally hear them, but only a dull wizz which is a hub that needs oiling probably, and that turbine is up-hill and 300m as the crow flies.

Yes well, the cost of energy from fossil fuel-based sources are only set to rise dramatically in historic proportions…

As an aside, I can confirm they look great at Lake George where hang glider pilots enjoy one of the best inland novice soaring sites in the world. It’s an amazing place, now only improved by being able to see the approaching seabreeze 40 mins before it hits the ridge on the western side — golly.

You can see what I mean from last week’s footage at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onS_-Pu8rHc

the power goes into the “National Grid” which all power companies draw from,the all dont have their own infrastructure!!it may well feed the de sal plant at kernell,but it also feeds the wilderness society head office etc etc!!snowy hydro produces green power,always has,but in times of low demand(Off Peak)they use energy from coal fired power stations and what ever else is feeding the grid at the time(Not Solar)to pump huge amounts of water back up the catchment areas to be used for hydroelec plants!!its like owning a toyota prius,good in theory!
we need more of these wind farms,huge ones to cope with the ever increasing demand in power,we should also look at wave action generators..but afterall we live in the most developed third world country on earth….CATCH UP AUSTRALIA!!!

Watched part of a show on TV the other week that highlighted the wind turbine industry in Denmark. Apparently they produce around 1/3 or the world’s wind turbines. Now wouldn’t this be a great industry for Aus to invest in. We have the raw resources and surely we would have the know-how. I also recall somewhere that an Aussie company is making these things in China for their domestic market.

Also on this show they featured a dairy farmer who bought one of these wind turbines about 10 years ago for around 1.2 million (don’t know if was the equivalent of Aus or US $$) but he was now making around 200k per annum from what he was returning to the grid.

Interesting stuff!

Clearly, many people don’t understand the basics of electrical reticulation.

The wind farm is directly connected to the Eastern Australian Electricity Grid (connecting the better part of all of Qld, NSW, Vic, SA, ACT and even Tas). Special power lines have not been constructed between Bungendore and the desal plant in Sydney. The electricity produced from the wind farm will simply offset the electricity used by the desal plant.

It’s not as simple as being able to say “electricity from here will be used there”. Nor can you say that 100% of electricity from a particular plant in Qld is exported to NSW. You can however say, Qld in total produce excess electricity and export it to NSW, but not from which plant.

Because the wind farm is already connected to the grid, the power is already being used and less coal/gas is being burned in thermal plants. Or less water is being released from the already dangerously low hydro electricity plants. Probably a combination of both.

Although it is universally accepted that “whole of life” costs for thermal (coal/gas) plants is currently less than emerging renewables, with greater investment, R&D and economies of scale, these tables will turn within the next few years to a decade.

Davo nsw: Your source for that information?

Just another opportunity for the nerd to wear his hard hat.