Thoughts on mega wind and solar projects

[jyoutz]

Here's a new and unanticipated benefit of wind & solar farms: When and if a tornado does thru, not only will you be out of power, but the flying glass chards, metal stands, tower parts, batteries, and the rest of the junk will be tearing apart any and all structures in the area of the path. Take a look at what happened to western Michigan a few weeks ago. Survivors are still spitting out solar parts. There might be enough parts to collect to jury-rig a temporary home 'generator' !

That argument is beyond ridiculous. Tornados tear up any source of power generation. In 2012 a tornado tore up a natural gas generating station in my state and caused a massive fireball.

 

[Hay Dude]

That argument is beyond ridiculous. Tornados tear up any source of power generation. In 2012 a tornado tore up a natural gas generating station in my state and caused a massive fireball.

Not ridiculous.
My guess is a Nuclear or gas power plant would fare better in a tornado than a field of flimsy solar panels or a bunch of giant yard spinners. If it were damaged, it would be more easily brought back on line.

 

[jyoutz]

Not ridiculous.
My guess is a Nuclear or gas power plant would fare better in a tornado than a field of flimsy solar panels or a bunch of giant yard spinners. If it were damaged, it would be more easily brought back on line.

We were out of power for 8 days after the gas plant was destroyed until they brought in and installed new turbines. I’ll let someone familiar with solar panel installation chime in on the replacement time frame. And nuclear really doesn’t play into the discussion because no power companies are funding new construction of those nowadays.

 

[Hay Dude]

We were out of power for 8 days after the gas plant was destroyed until they brought in and installed new turbines. I’ll let someone familiar with solar panel installation chime in on the replacement time frame. And nuclear really doesn’t play into the discussion because no power companies are funding new construction of those nowadays.

You’re wrong, again:

Yes, new nuclear plants are currently being built in the USA, including the Natrium Advanced Reactor in Wyoming and Units 3 & 4 at Plant Vogtle in Georgia. These projects are part of a broader effort to expand nuclear energy capacity to meet future electricity demands and reduce carbon emissions.
clearpath.org bechtel.com

 

[zzvyb6]

What I never see is a discussion about how both of these devices capture energy from the sun that was headed to the ground, then transmit it to another location possibly quite far away. There it will be disbursed as heat, friction, and exchange from motion. The amount of energy transferred is quite large.
It should be apparent that this amounts to a transfer of entropy from one location to another, so the weather changes resulting from this can't be ignored or trivialized. Move your furnace to another building and tell me you're still comfortable. Buy overseas stuff and see if local industry stays in business. No input, no output, no accumulation...

 

[orezok]

I see the wind turbines in the mountains in Western Maryland.
Uglier than a pimple faced geek in a beauty contest….
I wondered what happens if it’s real dry and one of those big doghouses catches fire? Could the wind blow sparks into

The solar panels certainly have their share of weather challenges, especially in cold climates, they make sense in the south & open southwest, but the windmills are awful. Ugly, a lot of moving parts and a lot of dead birds.

I see the wind turbines in the mountains in Western Maryland.
Uglier than a pimple faced geek in a beauty contest….
I wondered what happens if it’s real dry and one of those big doghouses catches fire? Could the wind blow sparks into a potentially dry forest and then we have a forest fire?

The solar panels certainly have their share of weather challenges, especially in cold climates, they make sense in the south & open southwest, but the windmills are

You should research before you post ridiculous statements about birds.

To put these numbers in perspective, wind turbines account for a very small fraction (less than 0.01%) of human-related bird deaths in the U.S.. Other major causes include:

• Outdoor Cats: 1.4 billion to 3.7 billion deaths.
• Building/Window Collisions: 365 million to 1 billion deaths.
• Vehicles: Approximately 214 million deaths.
• Fossil Fuel Power Plants: Estimated at 14.5 million deaths per year due to acid rain, habitat loss, and climate change

And as far as fire potential. Wind turbans OFF SHORE are the best solution for visibility and danger, but some idiot prefers dirty coal instead.

 

[dodge man]

I’m not trying to be against wind farms but did you ever see a cat drag down a bald eagle or a hawk? Wind turbines are killing raptors and other birds that cats aren’t going to mess with.

 

[MossRoad]

Interesting study found while reading other articles...

Illegal shooting is now a leading cause of death of birds along power lines in the western USA - PMC

Human actions, both legal and illegal, affect wildlife in many ways. Inaccurate diagnosis of cause of death undermines law enforcement, management, threat assessment, and mitigation. We found 410 dead birds collected along 196 km of power lines in ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[Hay Dude]

So illegal bird shooting accounts for more bird deaths, but this thread is about mega solar and wind projects.
So it would make be more on topic to talk about bird deaths related to mega wind projects.
Maybe a separate thread could be started at regarding illegal bird poaching?

 

[Hay Dude]

You should research before you post ridiculous statements about birds.

To put these numbers in perspective, wind turbines account for a very small fraction (less than 0.01%) of human-related bird deaths in the U.S.. Other major causes include:

• Outdoor Cats: 1.4 billion to 3.7 billion deaths.
• Building/Window Collisions: 365 million to 1 billion deaths.
• Vehicles: Approximately 214 million deaths.
• Fossil Fuel Power Plants: Estimated at 14.5 million deaths per year due to acid rain, habitat loss, and climate change

And as far as fire potential. Wind turbans OFF SHORE are the best solution for visibility and danger, but some idiot prefers dirty coal instead.

But most are on land, not on shore and we're stuck with all the bird killing wind turbines now.
They also catch fire or litter our soil and water with billions of pieces of fiberglass particles.
We have a TBN member here in this thread just give you his testimony after working in wind power fields for years. Yet you seem to think you know more from your AI generated statistics, which are many times incorrect?

 

[Phil Timmons]

Interesting study found while reading other articles...

Illegal shooting is now a leading cause of death of birds along power lines in the western USA - PMC

Human actions, both legal and illegal, affect wildlife in many ways. Inaccurate diagnosis of cause of death undermines law enforcement, management, threat assessment, and mitigation. We found 410 dead birds collected along 196 km of power lines in ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

This makes a few things rather obvious that were not before.

1. You have a weird and interesting Reading List.

2. That "Graphical abstract" (did they do that to be multi-language or what?) looks about like my idea of a good Process Flow Diagram on an Engineering Project. (yes the Chem E and Process Engineers always roll their eyes at my crap.) I am stealing that one for class.

3. Do you figure that folks shoot the silhouette of the bird(s) on the power lines or poles, like shooting cans off a fence?

 

[MossRoad]

I’m not trying to be against wind farms but did you ever see a cat drag down a bald eagle or a hawk? Wind turbines are killing raptors and other birds that cats aren’t going to mess with.

Actually, yes.

https://www.reddit.com/r/StrikeAtPsyche/comments/1pgnhzo/mother_cat_fights_off_three_birds_of_prey

 

[Phil Timmons]

But most are on land, not on shore and we're stuck with all the bird killing wind turbines now.
They also catch fire or litter our soil and water with billions of pieces of fiberglass particles.
We have a TBN member here in this thread just give you his testimony after working in wind power fields for years. Yet you seem to think you know more from your AI generated statistics, which are many times incorrect?

I just like the "Testimony" part. A+ on that.

The Simpsons - Testify

This could be a song.

Solar and Windmills of Satan,
I cannot lie,
Volcanos, Tornaders, Hail Storms, and Birds Cannot Fly!
Testify! Testify! Testify!

Love you, man.

 

[Eagle1]

Actually, yes.

https://www.reddit.com/r/StrikeAtPsyche/comments/1pgnhzo/mother_cat_fights_off_three_birds_of_prey

AI is a tool.... often used to deceive us.

 

[Hay Dude]

I just like the "Testimony" part. A+ on that.

The Simpsons - Testify

This could be a song.

Solar and Windmills of Satan,
I cannot lie,
Volcanos, Tornaders, Hail Storms, and Birds Cannot Fly!
Testify! Testify! Testify!

Love you, man.

The faculty lounge expert testimony sure beats the hands on, in the field guy, doesn't she/he? riiiight.
Pretty soon professors will be replaced by AI, but the men who work in the wind farms doing maintenance and repairs will never be replaced.

 

[MossRoad]

This makes a few things rather obvious that were not before.

1. You have a weird and interesting Reading List.

2. That "Graphical abstract" (did they do that to be multi-language or what?) looks about like my idea of a good Process Flow Diagram on an Engineering Project. (yes the Chem E and Process Engineers always roll their eyes at my crap.) I am stealing that one for class.

3. Do you figure that folks shoot the silhouette of the bird(s) on the power lines or poles, like shooting cans off a fence?

I was reading on bird deaths related to wind farms, and found several articles related to the power lines leaving the wind farms kill more birds than the wind turbines. The general consensus was the birds were getting electrocuted or running into the power lines causing death. Then that article popped up and instead of assuming the birds got electrocuted or collision injuries, they started collecting the birds and found the great majority of them had been shot! Nobody ever looked.

No idea why people shoot birds of prey other than their father and grandfather did, so they do too.

 

[MossRoad]

AI is a tool.... often used to deceive us.

Yeah it is. Read the comments. They're pretty funny.

 

[MossRoad]

Yeah it is. Read the comments. They're pretty funny.

The owl looks to have jesses.

 

[Phil Timmons]

This should make some of the monkeys in the zoo go crazy.

Enjoy.


============
Should we block some sunlight to cool the planet?
A conversation with Dakota Gruener of Reflective.
David Roberts
Mar 27, 2026
============

Should we block some sunlight to cool the planet?

Dakota Gruener joins me to discuss the gaps and unanswered questions in our understanding of solar geoengineering.

www.volts.wtf