Tilting at windmills?

General Discussion
1

There is a body of feeling against the erection of wind turbines in the north Dordogne that we are being asked to support.
I cannot in all honesty allow this to go unchallenged! We are told of " a large amount of noise pollution" & "property values falling by 50%", but based on what figures? I have found results of studies showing a negligable impact on house prices, really only having a negative impact if the turbines are very close to a property. Most are built well away from urban areas. The noise? Google "wind turbine noise" & look at the youtube clips. bear in mind that one can find reports for and against wind turbines. But I like the thought of energy from fresh air & I would rather look out at a field of wind turbines rather than a coal fired power station!
There is too much negative spin put on all forms of energy production, renewable or otherwise, & no one ever offers a viable alternative. Oil? It pollutes & is expensive & will run out soon. Nuclear? The waste lasts forever & is dangerous. Solar? Ugly, inefficient & who wants to look at acres of solar panels although it does not pump chemicals into the air? Wind, Big, ugly, & the wind will make swishing noises like it does when blowing in the trees & the dynamos will hum, but you have to be very close to hear that - pull off the N10 north of Angouleme near them & see which is loudest - the traffic or the turbines. Hydro? Think of the (temporary) impact on the environment! So how exactly ARE we going to power our lives, burn all the trees?
To produce power there has to be a balance & if my property will lose half its value but benefit from clean energy so be it. I bought my house to live in, not to act a an investment, or bought with borrowed money so that I can live in a style I cannot afford & have it paid for by others more abstemious than myself.


I would be interested to hear other point of view.

2

then, yes, stick to your original plan, solar panels on the roof, horseback to work, and grow your own veg.

3

Suppose your house is'nt in the close vicinity of either four........

4

I Passed windmills on the way from Paris to Ghent (Belgium) about a month ago. I got out of my car to stop and listen. They made NO NOISE, to my total surprise.

here's a couple of turbine related cartoons, but, this is my general opinion on.. not the matter, but peoples' attitude to the matter.![](upload://bFX6BwUWpqhPYTAhcmPGAPxND4P.jpg)

5

It’s the old NIMBY chestnut.
When we lived in UK, a guy wanted to open a curry take away in our village. Folk protested and had it knocked back, yet they were all seen regularly,in a similar establishment, in the next village.
I suppose a nuclear power station at the end your road might make one think windmills aren’t such a bad idea.

6

Putting up a row of a dozen or so 250 meter high windmills on the ridge of a hill where I'm looking at from my backyard might also do the trick for me to sign that petition. Especially if one considers that the maximal capacity obtainable with these kind of installations is a mere 21%. The noise is an issue when you life too close to them, that cannot be denied.

With about 30 sq mtrs of solar-panels on your own roof you might just manage to be self-sufficient for your electricity needs. Dig yourself a "puit Canadien" around your house and you will have a system that approximates an air-conditioning and use a geothermal system for heating and additional electricity in winter.

But then you'd still need gas for things like cooking. You could produce it partly yourself if you have your own septic tank in the garden. A wood stove would be feasible if you have sufficient land to grow trees for that purpose, yielding about 100 "stêres" of wood every year. So on an individual level a lot can be done....