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News articles on Wind Power

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Mongabay.com news articles on wind power in blog format. Updated regularly.

U.S. Congress passes legislation to boost solar, wind, and geothermal energy
(9/24/2008) Tuesday the U.S. Senate passed a bill that will extend tax credits on solar power installations through 2016. The House approved the measure Wednesday.


How do wind turbines kill bats?
(8/25/2008) Numerous studies have shown that migratory bats are undergoing large fatalities due to wind turbines. Far more bats die due to wind turbines than birds, though they generally receive less attention. Now, researchers writing in Current Biology believe they know why bats are more susceptible to wind turbine fatalities.


Electric cars, greener fuels can reduce Australia's dependence on foreign oil
(7/23/2008) Australia can reduce its dependence on foreign oil through renewable energy and a shift towards electric cars powered by solar and wind power, argues a report published today by Australia's National Roads and Motorists' Association (NRMA).


Gore launches second campaign... for Earth
(7/17/2008) In a speech Thursday, Al Gore challenged the U.S. to generate 100 percent of its electricity from zero carbon emission sources within 10 years. Speaking at Washington's Constitution Hall, Gore said America's security, environmental and economic crises are all related, and that measures to rein in greenhouse gas emissions will make the U.S. stronger, safer, and cleaner. "The survival of the United States of America as we know it is at risk," Gore said. "I don't remember a time in our country when so many things seemed to be going so wrong simultaneously."


Oceans hold vast potential for wind power
(7/9/2008) The North Pacific, Tasmania, New Zealand, Tierra del Fuego in South America, and the mid-latitudes of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans are potential locations for wind power generation, according to new satellite data from NASA.


Whale biomimicry inspires better wind turbines
(7/7/2008) By studying and mimicking the characteristics of the flippers, fins and tails of whales and dolphins, engineers have devised more a efficient way to generate wind power, reports a researcher presenting at the Society for Experimental Biology's Annual Meeting in Marseille, France.


Clean energy gold rush in 2007
(7/1/2008) New investment in renewables and energy efficiency surpassed $148 billion in 2007, rising 60 percent rise from 2006, according to an analysis issued Tuesday July 1 by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). High oil prices drove the trend.


94% of Americans support solar energy development
(6/11/2008) 94 percent of Americans say it's important for the U.S. to develop and use solar energy, according to a new poll that found support for solar power runs across the political spectrum.


$45 trillion needed to meet energy demand, fight global warming by 2050
(6/8/2008) Investors will need to spend $45 trillion by 2050 to keep pace with growing energy demand while addressing concerns over global warming, warned the International Energy Agency in a report issued Friday.


China aims for 100 gigawatts of wind power by 2020
(4/29/2008) China aims to expand its wind power generating capacity to 100,000 megawatts by 2020, more than doubling the current world's installed capacity, according to the Shanghai Daily and The Wall Street Journal's Environmental Capital blog.


Google aims to make renewable energy sources cheaper than coal
(11/28/2007) Tuesday Google announced an initiative to develop electricity from renewable energy sources that will be cheaper than electricity produced from coal.


Wind could supply baseline electrical power
(11/22/2007) Wind power, long considered to be as fickle as wind itself, can be groomed to become a steady, dependable source of electricity and delivered at a lower cost than at present, according to scientists at Stanford University.


Wind power takes a toll on migratory bats
(9/12/2007) The danger of wind turbines to birds has long been known and well documented. Most recently several studies and articles have attempted to place the level of bird casualties in perspective: "More birds killed by cats than wind turbines". But lesser known--and lesser studied--is the effect wind turbines have on bat populations. Collisions between groups of bats and wind turbines have been observed at numerous turbines in America, Australia, and Europe. While these fatalities, sometimes killing hundreds of bats, have been seen for years, their cause remains unknown.


Cuba Energy Crisis Solved
(7/5/2007) Cuba may be overcoming its intermittent energy crisis, according to a top U.N. official. Power shortages and brownouts have long been a problem in the small communist island nation, but it was daily 16 hour-electricity cuts in 2004 that finally forced the government to act. Its efforts are apparently paying off.


$100 billion invested in renewable energy in 2006
(6/20/2007) $100 billion poured into renewable energy and energy efficiency in 2006, a 25 percent jump from 2005, reports a new analysis by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).


Nobel prize winner debates future of nuclear power
(6/7/2007) Two renowned energy experts sparred in a debate over nuclear energy Wednesday afternoon at Stanford University. Amory Lovins, Chairman and Chief Scientist of the Rocky Mountain Institute, an energy think tank, argued that energy efficiency and alternative energy sources will send nuclear power the way of the dinosaurs in the near future. Dr. Burton Richter, winner of the 1976 Nobel Prize in physics, said that nuclear would play an important part of the future energy portfolio needed to cut carbon emissions to fight global warming.


First U.S. offshore wind farm wins preliminary approval
(5/23/2007) The first offshore wind farm in the United States won preliminary approval Tuesday from a panel of Delaware state officials. According to published reports, four Delaware state agencies ordered Delmarva Power, an electric utility, to buy wind-generated power from Bluewater Wind, the wind farm's developer.


More birds killed by cats than wind turbines
(5/9/2007) Last week's report by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (NAS) on the environmental impact of wind farms warned that turbines may kill up to 40,000 birds per year, a toll that makes some question the clean energy source is worth the trouble.


Wind energy has promise, but brings concerns, reports study
(5/3/2007) While wind-generated energy has the potential to produce clean electricity without carbon dioxide emissions, more research is needed to understand its impact on wildlife says a new report from the National Research Council, a private, nonprofit institution that provides science and technology advice under a congressional charter.


Wind energy speculation jumps in Texas, but Exxon on sidelines
(3/12/2007) While speculative energy ventures are nothing new in Texas, today companies are taking risky gambles in wind power argues an article that appears in today's issue of The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The WSJ reports that energy firms are investing hundreds of millions of dollars in some of the most remote -- and windy -- parts of Texas, but notes that the investments will only pay off with government subsidies.


Air pollution may reduce wind power, rainfall
(1/22/2007) Aerosolized particles and other pollution produced from vehicle exhaust may reduce wind speeds near Earth's surface, resulting in less wind for power generation as well as reduced precipitation, according to a study published in the December 27th online edition of Geophysical Research Letters by researchers at Stanford University and NASA.


Wind turbines could power China says expert
(3/9/2006) Wind could become China's second-largest source of electricity according to a Chinese energy expert. Wang Weicheng, an energy professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing, told reporters that China has the potential to install up to 100 gigawatts of wind power. Wang's comments come as China has been aggressively expanding its interests in renewable energy sources including wind, solar, biofuels, tidal, and small hydroelectric dams.


Making wind power less deadly for birds
(12/15/2005) High oil prices and concern over climate change are driving interest in renewable energy technologies. All types of potential power sources -- not limited to the sun, ocean tides and waves, raw sewage, and even insects -- are the focus of media reports, while governments and industry scramble to announce their grand plans for adopting green energy.


Britain has best wind power potential in Europe
(11/14/2005) A survey of wind power in Britain says the island nation has the best wind in Europe because it blowsyear round and peaks when there is greatest demand for electricity. Further, the study found that there has never been a time over the past 35 years when the entire country has experienced a period of no wind.


China to add wind power capacity
(8/15/2005) China plans to construct its first offshore wind power complex next year in hopes of easing chronic electricity shortages, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Monday.


How might I buy invest in green energy projects?
(7/20/2005) On June 17, Associate Press reported that Zilhka Renewable Energy hopes to complete a $100 million wind farm in eastern Oregon by December 2006. The article said the company owned wind farms in eleven states. For many investors, green or otherwise, this would seem like a great company in which to own stock. Whether or not the numbers would bear that out, a savvy investor would first want to know, "How might I buy a piece of Zilhka or invest in their projects?"



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