Wind power is catching on, and in many places it is price-competitive with electricity generated from coal-fired power plants. So far, nearly all of the wind-power capacity has been installed on land. Coastal oceans represent a vast untapped resource of wind energy worldwide.
Several countries in Europe realize this, and are working to capture the power of the ocean’s coastal winds. Denmark was the first to install an offshore wind mill, and England now leads the world, installing 80% of the off-shore capacity in 2012. China and Japan are also expanding wind power in their coastal waters.
The U.S. has been slow to adopt offshore wind farms. Several projects have been stymied by lengthy court battles assessing the impact wind mills have on the aesthetics of the coast line. Now, wind power advocates are confident that they can locate their facilities at least 10 miles from the coast, with minimal impacts on marine life, birds, and the unobstructed views prized by homeowners and vacationers.
Several studies have exonerated wind power’s potential effect on aircraft. And, the challenge of bringing wind power to shore could be met with a newly designed deep-water cable, stretching from New England to the Mid-Atlantic states.
The potential for shallow-water wind power along the East Coast is estimated at 300,000 megawatts—enough juice for 90 million homes. That translates into 70% of the housing that currently exists in the U.S.
Wind power has an attractive future as a low-impact and economic source of energy for the world’s economy. And the time to innovate is now.
Photo, taken on December 5, 2009, courtesy of Seiichi Ariga via Flickr.