Monday 19 February 2018

THE ABOMINATION THAT IS WHITELEE WINDFARM !


Scottish Power still publicise that Whitelee Windfarm has an “…average capacity factor of 27%...” – But this is the reality of metered generation:

 The trendline, as of Nov 17, is down at about 15% and STILL trending downwards. That’s not capable of generating enough electricity to power “…*298,837 homes per year…”, it’s only generating enough to power 166,021 homes per year.
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Wind farms were paid more than £100 million in 2017 to switch off their turbines. Astonishingly, windfarms receive on average 40 per cent more when switched off than when they are generating electricity.The National Grid pay the windfarms, but it is added to electricity bills of consumers.

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Scottish Power are, today, quoting a generating ‘capability’ for Whitelee Windfarm which is 80% in excess of metered reality !!!
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“…The topography of the area is of a relatively flat plateau with occasional hills rising above the flatter plateau landmass, all of which is overlain with deep peat, in some places reaching down past 8 meters………. No-one knows exactly when blanket bogs began to form but its accepted that it was somewhere between 6000 and 9000 years ago…” 

IT'S FAIR TO SAY THE SITE OF WHITELEE WINDFARM WAS UNDEGRADED PEATLANDS ! 
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“…Here we show that, whereas in 2010, most [undegraded peatlands] sites had potential to provide net carbon savings, by 2040 most sites will not reduce carbon emissions even with careful management. This is due to projected changes in the proportion of fossil fuels used to generate electricity.
 THE RESULTS SUGGEST FUTURE POLICY SHOULD AVOID CONSTRUCTING WIND FARMS ON UNDEGRADED PEATLANDS unless drainage of peat is minimal and:
THE VOLUME EXCAVATED IN FOUNDATIONS CAN BE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED COMPARED TO ENERGY OUTPUT…” 
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This paper was published just 3 years after Whitelee commenced operation, following the excavation and muck-spreading of 850,000 m3 of undegraded peatland (ancient - 6,000 to 9,000 years old - blanket peat bog).
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In addition, 2,500,000 tonne of stone was quarried for roads and turbine bases; 120,000 tonne of concrete was used; 2,250,000 non-native conifer trees [900 hectares] were removed; 300 hectares of spruce trees were removed.

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The raison d'être for windfarms is to save greenhouse gas emissions. Was Whitelee worth it when its Capacity Factor was 27%? 
DOUBTFUL !!!

Now its Capacity Factor is 15% - WHAT’S THE POINT ?

WHAT IS THE POINT !!!! 
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Whitelee would not pay back its Carbon Debt if it operated for 100 years!!!

But its lifespan may only be 20 years - 
25 years at the most.


How many more onshore windfarms are worsening our greenhouse gas emission, when we are paying through the nose for them to supposedly improve matters???