Farming the wind

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Consider the (energy) source

Electric cars cause more pollution than cars powered by gasoline. This doesn't have to be the case, but it will remain true unless we make major changes in our system of producing electricity.

The problem is that electric cars run on batteries, and batteries have to be recharged. And the recharge -- people tend to overlook this -- comes from plugging the batteries into the electric power grid. That means that batteries for electric cars and all other uses of electricity will cause pollution if we continue to generate electricity the way we do now.

Currently, about half of the electricity produced in America, and two thirds of the electricity in North Carolina, is produced by the burning of coal. Coal is the world's most polluting energy source because it consists almost entirely of carbon and a few contaminants, including sulfur. Thus, burning coal puts large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere plus a small amount of sulfur dioxide, which causes acid rain.

Coming clean on coal

This week, Progress Energy Carolinas' announced a plan to retire about 30 percent of the company's coal-fired power plant fleet in North Carolina. These plants have been a vital part of keeping the lights on for more than 50 years, and the decision to retire them was made after months of evaluation.

As environmental regulations continue to change, and as even more significant environmental rule changes appear likely in the near future, the cost of retrofitting and operating these plants will increase dramatically. We believe that this is the right decision for our customers, our state and our company.

Switching from coal to natural gas will result in significant emission reductions and the elimination of coal-ash production at the affected plant sites. Carbon is reduced 40 percent to 50 percent, sulfur dioxide and mercury emissions are eliminated, and nitrogen oxide emission rates are reduced more than 95 percent.

Powering up?

The General Assembly is trying to craft regulations for building electricity-generating wind turbines in North Carolina, and the legislative winds have been blowing hot and cold. No wonder -- the tall wind power towers with their three-bladed turbines would stand out in any landscape, particularly so atop western North Carolina's scenic ridges. When a proposal surfaced two years ago for a series of wind turbines on an Ashe County ridge top, opposition was immediate and effective.

Still, modern wind turbines have proven their usefulness in generating clean electric power and, in many locations, they're an appealing sight. The trick will be to protect the tourist-attracting natural resource of the Appalachian ridges without ruling out wind power in a naturally windy region.

Last week, state senators swayed back and forth on a bill setting the ground rules for getting permits to develop utility-scale wind both in the western mountains and along the coast. It's the mountain ridge-top issue, however, that's

Paltry power source

Commercial wind energy sounds like a good idea on the surface, but a closer look reveals the benefits are grossly exaggerated by wind promoters. Wind turbines actually produce very little energy. The wind doesn't blow all the time, so wind plants must always have back-up generation (on standby) provided by other fuel sources that emit pollutants. Nothing is really accomplished -- very little electricity is produced, and there is no reduction in emissions. And commercial wind plants come with a big price tag to taxpayers.

Small-scale wind turbines for residential use might make sense, but it makes no sense to deface some of the most beautiful mountains in the nation for virtually no gain.

Notice that many of those who immediately discount any criticism of wind power are the same ones making money off of it, including some colleges and universities. University wind energy departments receive taxpayer-generated state and federal funding. It makes sense that they would push for legislation that allows commercial

China races for clean energy domination

China vaulted past competitors in Denmark, Germany, Spain and the United States last year to become the world's largest maker of wind turbines and is poised to expand even further this year.

China has also leapfrogged the West in the past two years to emerge as the world's largest manufacturer of solar panels. And the country is pushing equally hard to build nuclear reactors and the most efficient types of coal power plants.

These efforts to dominate the global manufacture of renewable energy technologies raise the prospect that the West may someday trade its dependence on oil from the Mideast for a reliance on solar panels, wind turbines and other gear manufactured in China.