Q: What is wind power?
Wind energy is a form of solar energy. Sunlight falling on oceans and continents causes air to warm and rise. Cooler air rushes into the space left by the risen air, which in turn generates surface winds. Wind systems capture the energy in wind using large blades mounted on tall towers called turbines. The wind turns the blades and the blades rotate a generator, which produces electricity.

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Q: What are the environmental benefits of wind energy?
Wind energy is a very clean source of energy. It does not produce air emissions or hazardous waste. Wind energy offsets the emissions of other energy sources, thus reducing our contribution to global climate change. Using wind to produce enough power for over 200 homes (2,000,000 kWh) of electricity instead of burning coal will leave 900,000 kilograms of coal in the ground and reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions by 2,000 tonnes. This has the same positive impact as taking 417 cars off the road or planting 10,000 trees. Wind energy generation avoids the production of greenhouse gases, sulphur dioxide, carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, heavy metals and particulate matter. Using wind energy in place of conventional energy reduces the generation of smog and acid rain.

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Q: How do wind turbines work?
Wind turbines consist of large blades mounted on tall towers attached to a horizontal shaft. As the wind blows, these blades cause the shaft to turn. The shaft is attached to a generator located inside the head, or “nacelle” of the turbine, which creates electricity. To see wind turbines in action, view the CanWEA video ‘The Answer is Blowing in the Wind’

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Q: What is the potential for wind energy production in Canada?
Canada has a national wind resource map which helps create a better assessment of the wind energy potential. Current information shows that Canada has a significant wind energy resource. For example Northern Quebec (Nunavik) alone has enough wind resource to produce 40% of Canada's electricity needs. Besides wind resource, you also need to consider how much wind energy can be effectively integrated into our electricity grid and at what cost. Based on the experience of other countries it is possible for Canada to achieve 20% of its electricity needs from wind energy, which would be 50,000 MW of wind energy capacity.

Q. How much does wind energy cost?
In good wind areas, the costs of generating electricity from wind ranges from 6 to 12 cents per kWh. While this is still somewhat higher than the costs associated with the construction of some other new forms of electrical generation facilities, wind energy has no fuel costs and operating costs are continuing to decrease every year (by 3–5%) partly as a result of greater efficiencies and economies of scale. In contrast, most conventional generation costs are going up and steadily increasing Natural Gas prices are making wind power economics more and more attractive.

Q: Will SkyPower install turbines or solar panels on my house?
SkyPower develops large-scale renewable power projects, and does not install residential solar or wind power technology. To find manufacturer and installer contacts, refer to the appropriate section on the Canadian Solar Industry Association or Canadian Wind Energy Association website.

Q: How can I measure the potential for producing renewable power on my property?
Tools that exist to indicate the potential for renewable power generation on your property include: Natural Resources Canada green energy project analysis toolkit (www.retscreen.net), the Ontario Wind Atlas (www.ontariowindatlas.ca), Natural Resources Canada Solar Radiation Maps, and the Canadian Renewable Energy Network website.

Q: How can I find out more information about the Standard Offer Program in Ontario?
For more information about Standard Offer, see the Ontario Power Authority’s website at www.powerauthority.on.ca/sop/.

Q: How do wind and solar farms affect property values?
In other jurisdictions where wind farms have a longer history than in Canada, the vast majority of evidence indicates wind farms have no material effect on property values; indeed, the most extensive work from the USA and Europe indicates the reverse may be true. For more information, refer to ‘The Effect of Wind Development on Local Property Value’ document at http://www.crest.org/wind/index.html.

Q: Are wind farms safe?
Wind energy technology is one of the safest energy technologies: in over 20 years of wind power generation and with more than 100,000 machines installed, no passerby has been injured during the operations of a wind farm (date courtesy of the British Wind Energy Association, www.bwea.com). Turbines are designed to last safely for a minimum of 20 years and are equipped with vibration sensors to detect rotor problems and shut down in the case of irregularities. Turbines have mandatory aircraft warning lights for air safety, lightening protection devices to ground strikes and control fire risks, and mandatory health and safety regulations are enacted during turbine construction.

Q: Don’t wind turbines kill birds?
Numerous studies show that wind turbines kill few birds. Environmental scientists agree that a appropriately situated wind farms presents minimal danger to bird populations. The wind industry takes potential impacts seriously and bird studies are routinely conducted at proposed sites before wind farms are constructed, as a mandatory part of the environmental assessment process.

Q: Isn’t renewable power generation, like solar and wind, expensive?
Wind, solar, biomass and geothermal technologies have all exceeded expected cost reductions from 1975 to the present. Even though renewables costs have been reduced by over 80% since 1980, however, renewables still cost more than other sources of power. Wind power costs half-a-cent per kilowatt-hour more than natural gas power plants, while geothermal, biomass, and PV in increasingly order of cost, also cost more. Fortunately, in many cases, government research and development, as well as corporate innovation, have lowered costs beyond the expectations of observers across the political spectrum.

For further analysis of price performance and more background, click here to read the Renewable Energy Policy Project document “Winner, Loser or Innocent Victim: Has Renewable Energy Performed as Expected?”

Q: Where can I get more information on solar and wind power?
• The Renewable Energy Policy Project (REPP) (www.repp.org)
• Canadian Renewable Energy Network (www.canren.gc.ca)
• US Dept. of Energy: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network (www.eere.energy.gov)

Q: What kind of employment opportunities are created by wind and solar projects?
On an energy capacity basis, PV employs the most workers among the renewables examined in this report, followed by wind. Module assembly (30%), systems integration (17%) and contracting (15%) make up almost two-thirds of jobs in photovoltaic (PV) solar. Blade manufacturing (26%), turbine servicing (20%) and installation (11%) lead the activities within the wind power sector in job requirements. Interestingly, wind and PV offer 40% more jobs per dollar than coal. (Source: ‘The Work That Goes Into Renewable Energy’ report from the Renewable Energy Policy Project, found at http://www.repp.org/articles/static/1/binaries/LABOR_FINAL_REV.pdf).

For more information on employment in the environmental sector in Canada, refer to the Environmental Careers Organization website at www.eco.ca.

Q: Do wind turbines make a lot of noise?
Low frequency and infrasound noise emissions, which were of some concern in early turbine designs, are no longer issues due to modern turbine design that have blades upwind of the turbine tower. There is no evidence that current upwind turbine technology presents any problems related to the generation of infrasound / low frequency sound energy (Ontario Ministry of Environment ‘FAQ’s for Wind Turbine Projects’, http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/envision/gp/5135e.pdf). Noise impact assessments are performed by a qualified noise consultant early in a wind power project as part of the environmental screening process. Results are used to determine setback distances and the number and location of turbines on a site.