1. Wind is weak. Wind turbines need 47 times as much land to produce the same electricity, under ideal, steady wind conditions as a nuclear power plant.
2. Wind is unreliable and intermitted. It blows too fast, too slow, or not at all. It needs 100% backup by fossil fuel. Much of what wind turbines produce is wasted. It is often produced when not needed and "dumped". It is wasted when duplicate generators burn fossil fuels as backup to be ready to provide power if the wind slows down or stops. Coal, oil, natural gas, and nuclear plants do not need this backup or duplicate grids and production. They produce the same, reliable amount of electricity 24 hours each day, seven days each week, 365 days each year.
3. Wind and Solar Electricity is VERY expensive. Both need constant backup and duplicate electricity from fossil or nuclear fuels. New Jersey already has some of the highest electric rates in the country because many costs and taxes that pay for wind and solar are hidden in our electric bills. Right now, wind and solar energy supply only 8% of electricity produced in New Jersey. There will be big hikes in electric rates when we are forced to pay for the waste and duplication of more solar panels and wind turbines. Many voters won't notice because businesses and government agencies will pay the highest increases and pass those increases on to customers through higher prices and taxpayers through higher taxes. Also, utility bills now include notices inviting customers to sign up for new government assistance programs that pay utility bills.
4. Wind and solar make power failures and blackouts far more likely--especially when they make up more than 30% of the power in the grid. A 50% drop in wind speed cuts electric power to the grid by almost 90%. A 50% increase in increases power by almost 90%. When so much power in the grid suddenly fluctuates so wildly, it is very hard to immediately adjust power from other sources to compensate.
|