Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information Ltd.
Farmers Weekly

January 16, 2004

SECTION: LETTERS ; Pg. 2

LENGTH: 275 words

HEADLINE: TEXT: CHILLING DANGER OF ICY WIND TURBINES

BYLINE: Lyn Jenkins

BODY:
Your article (News, Jan 2) regarding sheep being killed by lumps of ice
falling from a TV mast causes alarm.

Have your readers given any thought as to what will happen if the UK
attempts to procure 20% of its electricity from wind turbines? It would
require 64,285 wind turbines 150ft high or 25,000 turbines 250ft high to
obtain just 20% of the average UK electricity usage which is 45000MW. Most
of the 1000 turbines already in the UK are about 150ft.

In frosty weather, under a prolonged high pressure system, the air can be
still for days. Turbines do not turn in such weather, so they produce no
electricity when it is needed most. Consequently, there would be prolonged
power cuts. The total UK requirement shoots up to 57,000MW in severe
weather. The 20% target then becomes 11400MW. To put that in perspective,
Wales uses a total of less than 2000MW.

Since we will have allowed conventional power stations to close, most of
that will be unavailable from anywhere without wind. The inter-connector
from France can supply only about 2000MW, but the French will have severe
weather, too.

When the thaw arrives so does the wind. Then the wind turbines start
spinning and the huge sheets of ice that have formed on their blades, which
can be 150ft long, are thrown through the air. There are dozens of recorded
incidents of that happening in Germany, Denmark and Holland
(www.wind-farm.org). The record ice-throw is more than 250m. With thousands
of wind turbines in exposed countryside, how safe will it be to go anywhere
near them?

Lyn Jenkins

Clyn-yr-ynys, Gwbert, Cardigan

www.reedbusiness.com/agriculture.htm

LOAD-DATE: January 15, 2004