Diversifying America's Energy Future: The Future of Renewable Wind Power
By Ronald H. Rosenberg
INTRODUCTION
Americans expect abundant supplies of inexpensive energy to fuel their lifestyles. Recently, however, a number of global forces are combining efforts to force government officials and citizens to seriously reconsider the nation's energy future. These forces reflect three essential concerns about the nation's use of energy: economic, national security, and environmental. The economic impacts of changing energy prices are most readily observable. When crude oil prices jumped to more than sixty-seven dollars per barrel in August 2006, the price of regular gasoline spiked to a national average of 2.98 dollars per gallon, affecting the lives and driving habits of most Americans. Beyond personal consumption, energy functions as an essential part of the American economy, powering the manufacturing, agricultural, and commercial sectors. Recent increased oil prices make American consumers, businesses, and policy makers aware of the effect of higher energy costs on the American economy and the overall quality of life.
Higher petroleum prices focus attention on the sustainability of American energy consumption patterns. Even before the oil price hikes during the summer of 2006, President George Bush summarized America's energy problems in the 2006 State of the Union address in striking terms: “Here we have a serious problem -- America is addicted to oil.” He reiterated this concern one year later in the 2007 State of the Union speech, challenging Americans to reduce gasoline consumption by twenty percent in ten years and calling for diversification of the nation's energy supply. Emphasizing the nation's security risks from importing increasing amounts of oil from volatile and potentially hostile areas of the world, he stated that U.S. dependency on costly imported petroleum was its most serious energy policy problem. Bush's comments, however, skirted another related global energy issue--the adverse environmental effects from combustion of carbon-based fuels.
Gradually, the problems stemming from the high levels of fossil fuel dependency in the United States have been recognized as ones that must be addressed. As the scientific consensus largely concludes that human activities contribute to global warming through the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas, American policymakers must now decide how to respond. A broad range of policy and technical alternatives must be evaluated as the United States develops energy plans for the future. While energy conservation might hold promise in restraining the rate of growth in energy use, all predictions of America's energy future anticipate higher levels of consumption, particularly consumption of electricity. How can the nation satisfy its ever-increasing demand for electricity to power its homes, offices, manufacturing plants, and commercial venues? Where will the necessary emission reductions in air pollutants and greenhouse gases (GHGs) be obtained in the future, especially if more energy is consumed? How will U.S. businesses and citizens shift away from a near-total dependence on fossil-fuel energy sources in coming years? These difficult energy questions pose a significant challenge for the nation.
Change in American energy patterns is already underway. While this shift presents numerous complex legal, economic, and environmental questions, the nation stands at the brink of a new era regarding the diversification of its energy supplies. The numerous disadvantages of costly and environmentally-damaging fossil fuels have led to the consideration of energy alternatives previously considered too costly or technically infeasible. In this new world of energy, the need to alter patterns of American energy use and supply has taken on an increased sense of urgency, as future penalties for carbon discharge may be implemented in the future. As a result, innovative energy sources are no longer viewed as experimental or exotic, but rather significant features of the developing energy future. As an example, renewable energy sources, including solar, wind, and hydro-power, are now being considered as substantial contributors to future American energy supplies.
This Article focuses on wind power as a form of renewable energy and addresses the central question of how the United States will change its electrical energy portfolio to respond to evolving energy realities. What are the prospects and obstacles for large-scale development of the potentially inexhaustible, non-polluting source of electricity derived from wind power? Historically, wind has been harnessed to serve basic human needs like grain-grinding and water-pumping, but has only recently been tapped to supply electrical energy in sizable amounts that supplement conventional technologies. The last quarter century witnessed the tremendous growth of wind power capacity, beginning with extremely small amounts and culminating most recently with a dramatic annual increase of approximately twenty-five percent. This recent expansion has been buoyed by escalating fossil fuel costs, as well as an increasing concern about the environmental impacts of current energy use. The central inquiry of this Article is whether wind power can be an important contributor to the supply of domestic electricity.
Although in the past wind power played a relatively small role in electricity generation, with the support of government policies and popular attitudes it can produce significant amounts of electrical power in the next ten to fifteen years. Such a shift is already underway in parts of Europe. If a similar change were to occur in the United States, important environmental and economic benefits would accrue to the nation and the world. Energy diversification towards wind power is underway in the United States, and the operative question is whether this pattern will accelerate to achieve the optimistic electricity generation goals set forth by government policymakers and wind power advocates. But is this transition towards wind power a uniformly positive step? All energy alternatives have associated benefits and drawbacks, and wind power is no exception. What are the disadvantages of wind power, and do they make this technology undesirable? The adverse effects of this form of renewable energy must be carefully assessed and understood. The most important judgment is one of comparative assessment: how do the effects of wind power compare with similar aspects of other forms of electricity production? This Article concludes that the United States must accelerate the diversification of American electricity. The environmental and social advantages of wind-generated electricity clearly outweigh the disadvantages, and public policy should encourage this form of renewable energy.
Americans expect abundant supplies of inexpensive energy to fuel their lifestyles. Recently, however, a number of global forces are combining efforts to force government officials and citizens to seriously reconsider the nation's energy future. These forces reflect three essential concerns about the nation's use of energy: economic, national security, and environmental. The economic impacts of changing energy prices are most readily observable. When crude oil prices jumped to more than sixty-seven dollars per barrel in August 2006, the price of regular gasoline spiked to a national average of 2.98 dollars per gallon, affecting the lives and driving habits of most Americans. Beyond personal consumption, energy functions as an essential part of the American economy, powering the manufacturing, agricultural, and commercial sectors. Recent increased oil prices make American consumers, businesses, and policy makers aware of the effect of higher energy costs on the American economy and the overall quality of life.
Higher petroleum prices focus attention on the sustainability of American energy consumption patterns. Even before the oil price hikes during the summer of 2006, President George Bush summarized America's energy problems in the 2006 State of the Union address in striking terms: “Here we have a serious problem -- America is addicted to oil.” He reiterated this concern one year later in the 2007 State of the Union speech, challenging Americans to reduce gasoline consumption by twenty percent in ten years and calling for diversification of the nation's energy supply. Emphasizing the nation's security risks from importing increasing amounts of oil from volatile and potentially hostile areas of the world, he stated that U.S. dependency on costly imported petroleum was its most serious energy policy problem. Bush's comments, however, skirted another related global energy issue--the adverse environmental effects from combustion of carbon-based fuels.
Gradually, the problems stemming from the high levels of fossil fuel dependency in the United States have been recognized as ones that must be addressed. As the scientific consensus largely concludes that human activities contribute to global warming through the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas, American policymakers must now decide how to respond. A broad range of policy and technical alternatives must be evaluated as the United States develops energy plans for the future. While energy conservation might hold promise in restraining the rate of growth in energy use, all predictions of America's energy future anticipate higher levels of consumption, particularly consumption of electricity. How can the nation satisfy its ever-increasing demand for electricity to power its homes, offices, manufacturing plants, and commercial venues? Where will the necessary emission reductions in air pollutants and greenhouse gases (GHGs) be obtained in the future, especially if more energy is consumed? How will U.S. businesses and citizens shift away from a near-total dependence on fossil-fuel energy sources in coming years? These difficult energy questions pose a significant challenge for the nation.
Change in American energy patterns is already underway. While this shift presents numerous complex legal, economic, and environmental questions, the nation stands at the brink of a new era regarding the diversification of its energy supplies. The numerous disadvantages of costly and environmentally-damaging fossil fuels have led to the consideration of energy alternatives previously considered too costly or technically infeasible. In this new world of energy, the need to alter patterns of American energy use and supply has taken on an increased sense of urgency, as future penalties for carbon discharge may be implemented in the future. As a result, innovative energy sources are no longer viewed as experimental or exotic, but rather significant features of the developing energy future. As an example, renewable energy sources, including solar, wind, and hydro-power, are now being considered as substantial contributors to future American energy supplies.
This Article focuses on wind power as a form of renewable energy and addresses the central question of how the United States will change its electrical energy portfolio to respond to evolving energy realities. What are the prospects and obstacles for large-scale development of the potentially inexhaustible, non-polluting source of electricity derived from wind power? Historically, wind has been harnessed to serve basic human needs like grain-grinding and water-pumping, but has only recently been tapped to supply electrical energy in sizable amounts that supplement conventional technologies. The last quarter century witnessed the tremendous growth of wind power capacity, beginning with extremely small amounts and culminating most recently with a dramatic annual increase of approximately twenty-five percent. This recent expansion has been buoyed by escalating fossil fuel costs, as well as an increasing concern about the environmental impacts of current energy use. The central inquiry of this Article is whether wind power can be an important contributor to the supply of domestic electricity.
Although in the past wind power played a relatively small role in electricity generation, with the support of government policies and popular attitudes it can produce significant amounts of electrical power in the next ten to fifteen years. Such a shift is already underway in parts of Europe. If a similar change were to occur in the United States, important environmental and economic benefits would accrue to the nation and the world. Energy diversification towards wind power is underway in the United States, and the operative question is whether this pattern will accelerate to achieve the optimistic electricity generation goals set forth by government policymakers and wind power advocates. But is this transition towards wind power a uniformly positive step? All energy alternatives have associated benefits and drawbacks, and wind power is no exception. What are the disadvantages of wind power, and do they make this technology undesirable? The adverse effects of this form of renewable energy must be carefully assessed and understood. The most important judgment is one of comparative assessment: how do the effects of wind power compare with similar aspects of other forms of electricity production? This Article concludes that the United States must accelerate the diversification of American electricity. The environmental and social advantages of wind-generated electricity clearly outweigh the disadvantages, and public policy should encourage this form of renewable energy.
