> I wouldn't call wind turbines exactly clean energy, between the need to have thermic power plant on stand-by to pick up the slack Depending on the source of

> I wouldn't call wind turbines exactly clean energy, between the need to have thermic power plant on stand-by to pick up the slack Depending on the source of thermal power, the amount consumed on standby can go to 0. If you have a decent transmission grid, the amount of standby power you need goes down. And if you have hydro, your emissions go down to 0. > the metric cube of concrete poured in the ground in the middle of nowhere to built them, the kilometers of copper to link them back to the network and the batteries to keep the excess electricity. One time expenses, which apply to other power sources too. As opposed to fuel, which is 0 in the case of wind. Batteries, by the way, are not needed at all for a wind farm. > And it's even worse when you see a field of turbines where half of them are not turning. You'll usually see that when the wind is strong but demand for electricity is weak, so the farm operators use the time to do maintenance.