Wind Power and Aesthetics
By Anastasia Schepers

Every year since the early 1990s, my husband, children and I visit the village where my husband grew up not far from the North Sea, on the western coast of the Netherlands -- a country where windmills were the primary source of power for five centuries. Windmills were used to pump water out of polders, grind grain and supply power. At one time there were as many as 9,000 windmills in the Netherlands; now about 1000 remain, including the Heense Molen, in Noord Brabant where my father-in-law, a baker, use to purchase flour to bake bread for his customers.

My children have grown accustomed to seeing both the old windmills as well as the new propeller-bladed wind turbines. These larger, more powerful modern day turbines produce over 100 times the amount of electricity as they did a mere quarter of a century ago. It seems that with each visit we notice new groups of on-land and offshore wind turbines when we drive around the countryside; they stand together here and there but never dominate the landscape. During our last visit, my 11-year old daughter remarked, "They're like light poles -- you just get used to seeing them."

Today the Netherlands and other European countries are committed to building wind farms and making the most of this free renewable resource. Over three-fourths of the world’s wind power is generated in Europe with Germany, Spain and Denmark leading the way. Today wind power supplies about 0.4% of the world’s electricity demand, but there are no technical, economic, or resource limitations that would keep wind power from supplying 12% of the world’s electricity by 2020, according to the American Wind Energy Association and European Wind Energy Association.

In August I attended a presentation to the Sierra Club on offshore wind power by Kathleen Whitely (formerly of the Sustainable Energy Alliance of Long Island and now a consultant for Applied Energy Group). A few people in the audience objected to wind power based on aesthetic reasons. They argued that the placement of wind turbines on the horizon of our "pristine" south shore beaches, mainly Jones Beach, would be unacceptable.

In the long run, I believe that their concern is misplaced. While they who witness (hopefully) the construction of wind turbines on Long Island may find it a little unsettling, to the next generation, and the one after that, these whitish-gray towers which very often blend into the horizon will become a common part of our landscape. Harnessing this free source of energy will not release soot into the environment or generate nuclear waste, it will not tap into our arctic wilderness, and it might even lessen our dependency on foreign oil. The benefits seem to far outweigh the concern over aesthetics. And over time, we will get used to them and appreciate them.

Anastasia Schepers, M.S., R.D. is a registered dietitian who works as a writer and assistant editor for Environmental Nutrition Newsletter. She resides in Lynbrook.