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I live in one of the beautiful western states where due to the wide open spaces, wind, and carbon reliance due to lack of many of their economic options, wind f

I live in one of the beautiful western states where due to the wide open spaces, wind, and carbon reliance due to lack of many of their economic options, wind farms are taking off. Up front, I get it. Wind and solar are likely a large part of how we avoid burning down the world. Without it, Climate change hits this area just as hard. That said, wind farms built to preserve the environment aren’t exactly preserving natural spaces themselves. They occupy huge acreage, and whatever unfortunate (read: low income and remote) town they get installed in is bearing the costs of a major environmental change by installing them. During the day, 100s of these things occupy every horizon for about 30-40 mins of driving. During the night, they all (so all 300 of them across acres and acres and acres) blink red lights you can see for miles and miles. It might be the only way out, but it’s not like a smoke stack or two occupying your skyline. The windmills become the skyline, and ruin the night sky which is part of what makes these places worth living in. It comes down to I really dislike that the rural west and all its beauty is the location paying for the costs of a nationwide carbon mistake, and it’s paying in the way that changes completely what makes this area special. If this is what it takes to not boil the ocean, these wind farm better go up in New York and Boston Harbor, Miami coast line, around DC, and in the Bay of the Bay Area. Or, we do solar farms. You’re going to have very disgruntled western states otherwise.

nocoiner 4y ago
I apologize if it sounds like I’m dismissing your concern, but who do you think owns the land these windmills are sitting on? Most of the time, private land owners who lease pad sites to renewable energy developers. Sometimes those landowners are local, sometimes not, but it’s not like these are going up in national parks. Your state legislature could make it impossible or impracticable to erect these facilities. For anyone else who agrees that these are ruining the character of your community, you should start lobbying your legislators, because I promise you the landowners have been for a very long time.
fundad 4y ago
Sounds like I get to drive around the open land in your state for hours and 3-40 minutes of driving is line of sight to a power installation. The wind farms will go up in NY, Boston etc but it will take a while because of the same NIMBYs. They do wield more NIMBY power because they can raise more money. Income inequality is the system working as designed, we won't nationalize any part of our power industry because the benefit would go to workers and ratepayers.
- dogman144 4y ago
  Not sure on what you mean by the first part? But if you’re saying they’re pretty out of way except for 30-40 mins of a long drive, that’s not really the case unfortunately although I could see how that’s your impression. Installs or planned installs are common across the state so getting hard to avoid. Important caveat perhaps is I’ve lived in the coastal centers for long stretches. Def aware of the financial and power imbalance, but they’re making a mistake by flexing it or dismissing it this way. As the all of these natural resource and climate concerns heat up, the state out here have some important leverage - breadbasket, minerals, headwaters of the 2-3 major US rivers, and so on. I’m interested to see how it all plays out, but I disagree that the schedule of change will be dictated by he NIMBYs.

nocoiner 4y ago

I apologize if it sounds like I’m dismissing your concern, but who do you think owns the land these windmills are sitting on? Most of the time, private land owners who lease pad sites to renewable energy developers. Sometimes those landowners are local, sometimes not, but it’s not like these are going up in national parks. Your state legislature could make it impossible or impracticable to erect these facilities. For anyone else who agrees that these are ruining the character of your community, you should start lobbying your legislators, because I promise you the landowners have been for a very long time.

fundad 4y ago

Sounds like I get to drive around the open land in your state for hours and 3-40 minutes of driving is line of sight to a power installation. The wind farms will go up in NY, Boston etc but it will take a while because of the same NIMBYs. They do wield more NIMBY power because they can raise more money. Income inequality is the system working as designed, we won't nationalize any part of our power industry because the benefit would go to workers and ratepayers.

dogman144 4y ago
Not sure on what you mean by the first part? But if you’re saying they’re pretty out of way except for 30-40 mins of a long drive, that’s not really the case unfortunately although I could see how that’s your impression. Installs or planned installs are common across the state so getting hard to avoid. Important caveat perhaps is I’ve lived in the coastal centers for long stretches. Def aware of the financial and power imbalance, but they’re making a mistake by flexing it or dismissing it this way. As the all of these natural resource and climate concerns heat up, the state out here have some important leverage - breadbasket, minerals, headwaters of the 2-3 major US rivers, and so on. I’m interested to see how it all plays out, but I disagree that the schedule of change will be dictated by he NIMBYs.