Green energy’s dark side: bird deaths, graveyards of broken blades, and other ecological harms

 In the Mojave Desert, the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System stands as a stark reminder of the unintended consequences of green energy projects. Built in 2014 with significant taxpayer backing, the plant was designed to harness solar power using thousands of mirrors to concentrate sunlight onto towers. Instead, it became infamous for its lethal impact on wildlife.

Federal wildlife officials described Ivanpah as a “mega-trap” for birds, with its intense light rays attracting insects and, in turn, birds that were incinerated mid-flight. Workers dubbed these tragic incidents “streamers,” referring to the smoke plumes left behind. At its peak, the plant was estimated to kill one bird every two minutes, totaling over 130,000 avian deaths annually.

Despite its ecological toll, Ivanpah struggled to meet energy production targets. Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), one of its primary customers, announced in 2025 that it would no longer purchase power from the plant. Two of its three towers will shut down next year, with the third likely to follow.

“It might have functioned merely as the world’s most expensive backyard bug zapper,”...<<<Read More>>>...

Wind power produces almost no energy yet UK energy providers still claim to deliver “green” energy – how?

Across Europe and the UK energy prices soared last week and wind power failed to produce any meaningful power. In the words of Norway’s energy minister, “It’s an absolutely shit situation.”

Even during this time of almost zero energy supply from “renewable, “green” energy sources, UK energy providers continue to claim they are supplying 100% “green” energy. So how does the “green” electricity scam work?

It has been a torrid week in the UK and continental European energy markets. A high-pressure system over the North Sea has meant low wind speeds and wind turbines across Northern Europe have struggled to produce much meaningful output. So how have energy companies managed to honour their commitments to supply 100% green electricity?...<<<Read More>>>...

Ed Miliband pledges ‘most ambitious reforms to UK energy system in generations’

 Ed Miliband has pledged to bring in “the most ambitious reforms to the country’s energy system in generations” as he presses ahead with plans to accelerate the development of onshore windfarms in England.

The energy secretary is to set out the government’s “clean power 2030” plan on Friday, including measures to boost the UK’s renewable energy supply such as building canopies of solar panels on outdoor car parks.

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero says the proposals will generate £40bn a year from the private sector.

Energy industry and environmental groups broadly welcomed the plan, with the latter urging the government against investing in carbon capture projects at the expense of supporting renewable energy development.

Ministers want to wean the country off its dependence on fossil fuels, which was laid bare when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused British energy bills to soar to record highs.

Among the measures covered by the plan was confirmation that onshore windfarms will be brought back into the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project regime in England, which streamlines planning processes for important and large-scale projects.

This would make it easier to progress onshore farms larger than 100MW, which in some cases require hundreds of acres of land.

The government will launch a call for evidence on car park solar panel canopies next year, and also said there was significant scope to install solar panels on warehouse and factory roofs, with 20% of the UK’s biggest warehouses potentially providing up to 15GW of solar capacity.

The plans come as low wind and solar power generation forced Britain to rely heavily on burning gas and wood pellets. As of Thursday, about 65% of Britain’s electricity was being generated from gas and biomass, with only 5.3% coming from wind....<<<Read More>>>....

UK consumers have paid £1 billion this year to turn off wind farms and start-up gas plants

 The UK is on track to waste a record amount of wind power in 2024. The grid can’t cope with the increase in the number of wind farms and blustery weather and so wind farms are being paid to turn off.

“So far this year, the UK has spent more than £1 billion ($1.3 billion) in ‘congestion costs’ to turn off plants that can’t deliver electricity because of grid constraints, and switch on others,” Bloomberg reports. A cost that is ultimately borne by consumers.

The UK has boosted its offshore wind fleet by 50% in the past five years and plans to double it in the next five years, but the grid hasn’t expanded at the same pace, resulting in the operator paying wind farms to turn off.

So far in 2024, the UK has spent over £1 billion in “congestion costs” to turn off wind farms that can’t deliver electricity due to grid constraints and switch on others, with Scotland’s offshore wind farms being particularly affected.

The problem of curtailed generation has become increasingly common, with this year’s congestion costs exceeding last year’s total and second only to 2022 when power prices were almost three times as high...<<<Read More>>>...

With all the detrimental effects of wind farms, how on Earth are they being approved?

 Dr. Tess Lawrie writes about a conversation she had with a farmer in Wales about the negative impact wind farms are having on local communities.

They are causing significant health issues, including sleep disturbances, chronic stress, and motion-sickness-like symptoms, due to low-frequency infrasound emitted by turbines.

Negative effects are not limited to humans. Wind turbines have a detrimental effect on local fauna, particularly birds, bats and insects on land, as well as dolphins and whales at sea.

How are they being approved by local councils? Dr. Lawrie asks incredulously.

There is growing scepticism about the climate change narrative that drives many renewable energy policies. Living in the UK, there is no doubt the weather is doing strange things – it’s been a miserably cloudy and cold year with hardly any sunshine whatsoever. But is this climate change or part of a climate hoax?

Devastating floods in Spain as well as the fires in Greece have raised questions about whether these events were genuinely natural or potentially orchestrated. This possibility only reinforces the need to critically examine policies that push for widespread wind farm developments, which are so obviously visual and noise pollutants. So why are they allowed?

Wind energy is presented as a solution to “climate change,” yet its long-term effects on health, ecosystems and local communities are devastating and these effects are completely overlooked....<<<Read More>>>...

Another study shows low-frequency vibrations from wind turbines can harm human health

Wind turbines are known to disrupt wildlife and severely damage the surrounding biotope, And, despite being inaudible, it is known that low-frequency vibrations from wind turbines can be harmful to human health.

Humans can only perceive sound waves over a range of approximately between 20 and 20,000 Hertz. Sound waves below 20 Hz cannot be heard by humans and are called infrasound.

Natural infrasound emitted by nature is harmless but it is increasingly being understood that infra-sound generated by wind turbines pulsates and make people who are subjected to them over extended time periods sick.

The rotating blades of wind turbines cause air pressure changes, which in turn can cause pressure on the ears and chest and lead to health issues and even serious problems like arrhythmia and vision impairment, according to a German Medical Journal.

The study's abstract states: "Noise-exposed citizens, who live near infrastructures such as biogas installations, heat pumps, block-type thermal power stations, and bigger industrial wind turbines (IWT's), show worldwide mainly a symptomatology associated with microcirculatory disorder."...<<<Read More>>>...

Wind Turbines Taller Than Skyscrapers to March Across British Countryside

The Energy Secretary’s decision means turbines as high as 850ft can be built on hills and fields – far taller than the London skyscraper, which stands at 591ft.

Mr. Miliband has lifted the previous Government’s ban on all onshore wind in the English countryside, announcing plans to give himself the final decision-making power on applications in an attempt to hit Net Zero targets.

A spokesman for the Energy Department also made clear last week that there will be no height restrictions imposed on new turbines, opening the way for massive models being developed by Chinese and other manufacturers to be erected around the U.K.

He said: “There are no national limits on turbine height in the U.K.”

The spokesman added that “landscape and visual impacts must be measured and taken into account”. ...<<<Read More>>>...