Wind energy is a renewable source of energy. It is not something that is available in a limited amount. Instead, the sun replenishes the energy level on a daily basis.
Wind energy is one of them. And, therefore it is very good source of energy to use for power generation and other purposes. Let's take a look at the various advantages and disadvantages of wind energy.
The Advantages Of Wind Energy
The main advantage of wind energy is that it is a clean source of energy. The main reason behind climate change is that the current sources of energy generation are excruciatingly polluting. The main culprit is fossil fuel. In the case of wind energy however, there is absolutely no by product that can cause any harm to our environment.
Another advantage of wind energy is that it is a non-perishable, virtually unlimited source of energy. Naturally, the wind cannot just stop moving one fine morning. You are not measuring the amount of wind against a scale and making sure that you do not use more than what is available. Therefore, you need not worry about it being unavailable any day.
Other than this, the wind energy is cheap. The fuel is wind which is available free of cost. Wind energy is best suited for areas which do not receive a lot of sunlight. Wind energy can be used in collaboration with other sources of power generation. The technology involved in development and deployment is very simple. It is also very safe as compared to something like nuclear energy.
The disadvantages of wind energy
The main disadvantage of wind energy that it is not very reliable in consistency. The wind might be flowing with real gusto one day. The very next day, it may be totally absent. The intensity of wind is also rather unreliable. One day the wind might be blowing at just the exact pace required. The next day it might be all calm with not enough intensity to move a blade. The very next day, it might be moving fast enough to damage the windmill. The lack of consistency is a problem.
Another disadvantage is that to be commercially viable, wind energy requires a huge area to install windmills. This means that it is not viable for electricity generation in cities. In case of installation of wind energy at the rural sites, there are two disadvantages. First that it is very noisy and kills the calm of countryside. The second that a number of people find it aesthetically disturbing. Other than this, wind energy is also known to adversely affect the bird population thus killing a natural pesticide.
These advantages and disadvantages of wind energy are just some of the simple ones. There are a number of other points which are being worked upon by the industry experts.
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