[BOBTHENAILER]

Oil and Gas vs. Wind and Solar Energy: A nationally organized advocacy effort seeks to prohibit oil and gas exploration in key prospective areas. Proponents favor using renewable energy resources instead, particularly wind and solar systems, believing they are more environmentally benign and less polluting. While increased use of home solar systems would likely be well received by communities, their cost (about $20,000 for a 2,000 sq. ft. home) is out of reach for typical homeowners. At the community level, it would be difficult to overstate the complexities of siting, permitting, legal challenges and construction problems associated with large commercial wind or solar installations.

Paul K. Driessen of Fairfax, Virginia calculates that producing 50 megawatts of electricity from photovoltaics would mean covering 1,000 acres with solar panels. To produce the same amount of electricity with wind towers (100-200 feet high) would require some 4,000 acres. By comparison, less than half an acre would be required to produce 50 megawatts of electricity from oil, or 2 to 5 acres for natural gas.

This is from a study on ANWR, FYI

[SierraWasp]

Oooops! Dere it is!!! SLAMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM............DUNK!!!

[newgeezer]

Paul K. Driessen of Fairfax, Virginia calculates that producing 50 megawatts of electricity ... with wind towers (100-200 feet high) would require some 4,000 acres. By comparison, less than half an acre would be required to produce 50 megawatts of electricity from oil, or 2 to 5 acres for natural gas.

So what? Is there a shortage of land in the great plains states? No. There's a glut, and 4000 acres -- 8 sq. miles -- is nothing. It's a few acres here and there, like the telephone pole takes up space in a yard. We can use the land we're currently paying people to not grow crops on, and nothing is lost. The land is not "used up" anymore than the ocean is used up by sailboats.

On the other hand, while wind power might require 4000 acres to produce 50 MW, it uses zero oil, zero natural gas, zero coal, zero uranium, and produces zero byproducts.

Next.

[biblewonk]

I just read that natural gas prices are costing 5 cents per kwhr. That's just the cost of the fuel and it is the least stable of fuel prices. Wind power is being wholesaled at 5 cents per kwhr today and the price declines every month.

It is an error to think that 4000 acres are used up when windmills are placed on them. The land, usually farm land or plains, is still 90 percent as productive as before. For the farmer he is still growing corn and earning an extra 3-6000 dollars per year per turbine. Everyone wins.

[SierraWasp]

Just like I figured! Ol "hardcase" drops the Commonist Manifesto for a tagline and waxes poetic with the verbal diareaha about the desirability of cluttering the entire prarie with view screwing ugly whirly bird whackers, just to keep from using oil and gas!!!

It's amusing and amazing what lengths some people will go to, to justify their untennable positions. Then they wax all full of self-righteous certitude when nobody agrees with them, except some fellow deluded dreamer and fellow traveler! Wow!!!