Britain's secretary of state for business, John Hutton, plans to identify sites in British waters for up to 7,000 offshore wind turbines, averaging one wind turbine every half-mile around the coast.
Only 2% of Britain's power currently comes from renewable sources, but the European Union target is for 20% of all energy to come from renewable sources by 2020.
Some eight gigawatts of capacity could be up and running by 2014, including the one gigawatt London Array, the biggest offshore wind farm in the world. By 2020, Hutton plans to have enough wind turbines to produce 33 gigawatts of electricity.
"If we could manage to achieve this, by 2020 enough electricity could be generated off our shores to power the equivalent of all of the UK's homes," Hutton said in a speech to a European energy industry conference in Berlin on Monday.
References:
- Big move towards wind power being planned
http://uk.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUKL0936801820071209
- Wind 'could power all UK homes'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7135930.stm
http://environment.independent.co.uk/green_living/article3236132.ece
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Comments: 16
This is very good news, and shows that the move to replace fossil fuels with renewable and proftible alternative energy is moving ahead, faster than we thought possible a few years ago. Great article, thanks for posting.
Do you have an option other than sending troops to the mideast?
I include a link to a large european wind farm operator and their records shows the great intermittent nature of wind in that the amount of energy their wind farms are putting into their system vacillates between .02% to 38%.
It is not likely that wind will ever be able to provide all of the power needed for U.K. homes.
Steve,
"Do you have an option other than sending troops to the mideast?"
Yes, nuclear power.
But this is an issue that must be contended with, just because it seems like a good idea doesn't mean everyone is going to accept it.
Right now in the us we have environmentalists concerned with global warming wanting to erect an off shore wind farm doing battle with fellow environmentalists who are concerned with the effect those turbins will have on the bird population.
"Ishbel: "...we have a boat and sail often... the idea of dodging wind turbines does not appeal."
Do you have an option other than sending troops to the mideast? "
And this is supposed to read as......?