The Sustainability of Wind Energy

Amongst the various types of renewable energy available, wind energy is probably one of the most efficient and widely used around the globe. For example, as of 2015, the country of Denmark produces approximately 40% of its electricity from wind. While that’s only one (relatively) small country, the fact that they they can supply that much of the needed energy from an entirely renewable source is astounding.

Understanding More About Wind Energy

One of the biggest ‘problems’ that wind energy presents stems from the amount of space required to generate it. This is why you’ll often hear about ‘wind farms’, which are large collections of turbines in the same geographic vicinity that sees a lot of consistent wind gusts. Below is more information if you want learn about the impact of wind energy environment, how it works, and how it’s changing the energy industry.

How The Technology Works

At the most basic level, wind energy is produced by the kinetic energy of wind which is then converted into usable electrical power. The premise of using wind for productive purposes isn’t new, as there have been wind mills around for hundreds and hundreds of years. However, in the past, wind mills were used more for a singular purpose such as to mill grain or pump water. Now, in areas where wind consistently gusts across plains, or at certain off-shore locations, you can find ‘wind farms’ which are spinning to consistently produce, collect, store, and disperse usable electricity.

Why Is It Beneficial To The Environment?

One of the biggest cases for wind energy (as opposed to something like solar energy) is that the technology has developed to quite an advanced point already, and it isn’t dependant on the time of day or whether or not the sun is out. It reduces dependence on fossil fuels, which leads to more sustainability for the planet. Not only that, but every dollar that goes into wind energy is going towards the advancement of even more efficient technology, which helps the global initiative of eliminating dependence on finite fossil fuels.

Can A Homeowner Use Wind Energy?

In the past, the system was set up so that one company would dictate where people would get their electricity from. In some ways, the government run $200+ billion electricity industry was the last great example of a government sanctioned monopoly. However, time are changing, and it’s starting at the state level. As of now, over 20 states have embraced deregulation, which allows for open competition amongst electricity providers similar to the way that consumers can choose which phone provider they want to use.

While wind energy doesn’t have the same consumer accessibility as solar energy (a person can get solar panels installed on their roof if they want, but they can’t get a massive 5 story wind turbine in their backyard), homeowners can still take advantage of this alternative form of energy. If you’re interested in using wind energy in particular, you need to contact an energy supplier like Star Energy Partners to get a quote. From there, you’ll have a few different options in choosing electricity companies, and will be saving the planet along with saving on your monthly bills.