Wind Power Handbook

You can’t depend on wind they say. When you least expect it, the wind dies, the sails luff, the power goes. As we stretch to reach national 25×25 goals, there are plans afoot to tame the will-o-the-wind. The Iowa Stored Energy Park, a joint project of Iowa, Minnesota and the Dakotas, is one such effort. How do they plan to get wind energy on demand? Why, simply harvest the wind’s energy and store it for future use. And once again we see that grassroots organizing is so important!   (more…)

Resistance can come from many directions. The will of inconsistent wind as it affects power grid reliability is a tough argument against wind power. No one wants their power to falter in the middle of a crucial operation, a major data download, or one’s favorite television show. Wind is not a constant nor a guaranteed source of electric power, fossil fuel sources are. Yes, power grid reliability is a challenge, but is it a wind stopper? (more…)