Four more wind turbines planned off Nantasket (100% of town's power - Hull, Mass.)

[jpak]

http://www.wickedlocal.com/hull/news/x958600516

Local officials are moving ahead with plans to build four offshore wind turbines, with the capacity to generate enough power to meet 100 percent of the town’s electricity needs.

A Wellesley consulting and engineering firm contracted by Hull to develop the proposal filed an application with state officials in December to erect four power-generating windmills on a shoal known as Harding’s Ledge, roughly 1.5 miles east of Nantasket Beach.

State environmental officials will visit Hull town hall on Jan. 24 to review the plan, and are collecting public comments through Jan. 29. State Secretary of Environmetal Affairs Ian Bowles, a staunch wind-energy supporter, is expected to make a preliminary decision sometime around Feb. 6.

With two land-based turbines producing some 12 percent of the town’s electricity, officials hope to expand Hull’s renewable-power inventory with four offshore turbines that would produce a total of 15 megawatts of power.

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[bbinacan]

1. Good for them. n/t

[NNadir]

2. Really? They're going to live in the dark when the wind dies?

That's very noble of them. It sort of reminds one of the wonderful big deal wind-to-hydrogen plant on Utsira that fundie anti-nukes were hyping here a few years ago, along with Governor Hydrogen Hummers brazillion solar roofs.

They seem to have dropped the subject, although they consistently oppose the world's largest, by far, form of climate change gas free energy.

I'm sure as many people will drive to the "wind powered" town to enjoy the wonderful views of the milky way on the very clear and cold and dark nights.

This is in contrast to some other New Englanders. To the North some of their not-too-bright neighbors just burn natural gas, and will do so at least until the Sable Island gas fields run out.

Then they'll just build cargo-cult like gas terminals off shore and pray for the Gods to send them tankers.

[jpak]

4. They will probably do what others do when the local nuke trips or is refueled

Use power from other generators on the grid.

[NNadir]

6. Oh. I see. In fundie "percent talk" 100% doesn't mean 100% of the time.

It means something else.

Nuclear power plants have the highest capacity utilization of any form of energy in the United States, 89.2% as of 2005.

This compares to about 23% for wind and about 20% for solar.

In general though, anti-nuke fundies, who do a lot of "percent talk," have no idea what this concept - capacity utilization - means.

[jpak]

7. No - the turbines will produce all the electricity the town uses each year

and you still fail to comprehend that wind turbines produce power 65-90% of the time and have >98% availability.

They do not produce power "23%" of the time.

Furthermore, your capacity factors for solar and wind are wrong. Wind farm capacity factors vary from 25-50% - the vast majority achieve annual capacity factors >30%.

nice try though...

(not)

Oh yeah - global and US additions of wind power capacity over the last 2 years outstripped additions of new nuclear capacity by a country mile - even if you account for differences in annual capacity factors.

*reality*

[NNadir]

8. The capacity factor of wind plants is available from direct calculation.

The references in my post are clear as the arithmetic.

If you can't do direct calculations, you join Greenpeace.

If you can, you don't join the fundie anti-nuke cult.

[jpak]

9. Made up BS is made up BS

Sorry to burst your bubble...the actual realized annual capacity factor for the Hull One turbine is 27% - and it varies over the annual cycle.

http://www.reliance.org/Case_Study_Hull_Wind_One.pdf

[jpak]

10. Here's some real discussion of real wind turbine capacity factors in the real world

http://www.reliance.org/2a_Capacity_Factor.pdf

Wind turbine capacity factors are site and turbine make-specific and vary from 20-40%...

[One_Life_To_Give]

3. Hull showing the way for Hyannis?

Good for them. It appears most people in Hull are getting used to the idea of having turbines around. At least didn't see much of the knee jerk Nimbyism listed in the linked article.

[losthills]

5. I once knew a girl from Nantasket....