You negative impacts of wind energy are those that affect the dynamics of the environment, the population that lives close to the wind farms and also the local economy. Although wind energy is considered a clean and renewable source, presenting itself as an important alternative to fuels fossil fuels, it is necessary to take into account all the negative impacts that turbines and wind power generation parks can occasion.
The reduction of these impacts permeates the development of socio-environmental policies that combine the importance of preserving nature and traditional communities with the implementation of a sustainable energy matrix, in addition to better elaborate planning that includes careful studies on aspects of the area and its viability to receive such enterprise.
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Topics of this article
- 1 - Summary of the negative impacts of wind energy
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2 - What are the biggest negative impacts of wind energy?
- → Environmental impacts of wind energy
- → Social impacts of wind energy
- → Economic impacts of wind energy
- 3 - Impacts of wind energy in Brazil
- 4 - How to reduce the negative impacts of wind energy?
Summary on the negative impacts of wind energy
Wind energy, although a renewable and clean source of electrical energy, can generate negative socioeconomic and environmental impacts.
The negative environmental impacts are mainly the loss of biodiversity, deforestation and the ecosystem imbalance with the suppression of habitats.
The negative social impacts are related to the noise of the propellers of the wind towers, which affect the people's well-being and health, as well as conflicts over land and changes in the population's way of life local.
The economic impacts relate both to the economic activities previously carried out in the area where the new undertaking will be installed and to the high costs for its implementation.
These problems are identified in wind farms already installed and in the process of being installed in Brazil, mainly in the Northeast region of the country.
The best planning for the installation of new wind farms, the supervision of those in operation and the improvement of environmental policies are some of the solutions for reducing the negative impacts of energy wind.
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What are the biggest negative impacts of wind energy?
wind energy It is a renewable energy source which depends on the strength of the winds to generate electricity. Because it uses an abundant resource in nature, which is constantly replenished, wind energy can be described as clean energy that does not emit polluting gases into the atmosphere. Despite that, wind energy generates socioeconomic and environmental impacts in the areas where it is installed. Let's get to know some of these impacts below.
→ Environmental impacts of wind energy
The generation of electricity by the action of the winds is done inside the towers or mills that are installed in open fields in places where there is high atmospheric dynamism. These towers can reach up to 120 meters in height, while the its blades (or propellers) are over 60 meters long. The rotation speed of this structure varies according to the wind speed, but even so, the environmental impact caused by wind turbines is considerable.
The infrastructure of a wind farm affects migratory birds and bats, mammals that fly at night and have an echolocation system called sonar. Both birds and batscollide with the propellers, and the collision causes the death of these animals. Therefore, there is a negative impact on part of the local fauna, which results in environmental imbalance. The loss of this biodiversity can negatively affect the economic sector, since the animals can help control pests in the plantations in the areas where they roam.|1|.
Another important point to be considered is the substrate where the wind farm is installed, which can weaken the soilor yet, removal of vegetation cover native for the implementation of all the physical infrastructure necessary for the operation of an electricity generating and distributing plant. In addition to the significant alteration of the natural landscape, deforestation and soil breakdown leads to habitat destruction and affects the balance of local ecosystems.
The entire process of construction and implementation of a wind farm and structures such as transport routes causes impacts on the environment, such as soil and water bodies pollution.
→ Social impacts of wind energy
The impacts of wind energy on society happen from different aspects. the first of them understands the noise pollution which is generated by wind turbines, which, when in motion, emit a very loud and constant noise. The noise is harmful for the population that lives close to the wind farms and directly affects the quality of life of these people. This is, therefore, the second aspect to be considered, which is comfort and well-being.
Very loud noise interferes with day-to-day activities and even rest, which reflects on the health of individuals, who start to live, for example, with a higher level of insomnia and stress. In addition, wind farms promote transformations in the socio-spatial dynamics of the area, transforming the way of life of people who live nearby.
There is the possibility of conflicts arising over land in the areas where the wind farms will be built, since that large plots of land are needed and in very specific locations where the climate is favorable for the installation of the power plant.
That way, villages, traditional communities and other inhabited areas may have their land targeted for the implementation of a wind farm, which triggers a series of discussions, legal processes, protests and other actions that can take a long time before a viable solution is reached. In addition, these traditional communities have their lives transformed, which interferes with social dynamics, habits, cultural expression and the way these people interact with the environment.
→ Economic impacts of wind energy
The economy of a locality is also impacted by the installation of a wind farm. On the one hand, the arrival of a new enterprise is beneficial for the generation of jobs and for boosting the local economy, in addition to representing a new alternative for energy consumption. Nonetheless, the investments necessary to enable the construction of a wind farm are very bulky, andthe return is not always the one expected. The public power also needs to work on the technical and normative apparatus that allow the operation of these undertakings.
Local economic activities, especially when it comes to primary sector of the economy, are affected by the change in the dynamics of the flows of people and investments that are promoted, as well as by the modification of the natural environment, which can harm plantations, areas destined for extractivism and fishing. Not only that, but the cost of living in the area tends to change with the new undertaking of great proportions and of great impact for the region, the city or the district.
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Impacts of wind energy in Brazil
The Northeast region is the main generator of wind energy in the country, identifying all the impacts mentioned above: environmental, social and economic. Deforestation, the reduction of biodiversity and the environmental imbalance that the parks Brazilian wind farms have promoted in the Caatinga and Cerrado biomes, in the interior of the states of this region of the Brazil (like in Ceará, Piauí, Bahia and Rio Grande do Norte), in addition to coastal environments, such as dunes and sandbanks, when it comes to the plants located along the northeast coast of the national territory.
The fact that, in Brazil, we have cases in which wind farms promote cultural and historical impact in the locations where they will be installed, as in the states of Rio Grande do Norte and Paraíba. In these federation units, more precisely in the region known as Seridó, an enterprise with more than 370 turbines endangers an archaeological site and the quilombola community and the farmers who live in those areas. lands|2|.
There are still conflict cases in areas of indigenous lands for the implementation of wind farms, also in the Northeast region. This fact threatens not only the territory that is protected by law, but also the way of life and cultural traditions of this traditional Brazilian population.
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How to reduce the negative impacts of wind energy?
Development of environmental policies aimed at implementing this type of plant in a way that respects and protects the natural environment, such as through environmental compensation policies|3|.
Reinforcement of the rules for obtaining the environmental license for the release of the enterprise, as well as inspection during the implementation stages.
Carrying out field studies to characterize and analyze the viability of the area, in addition to a Robust planning on how the installation of the wind farm will be carried out according to reality local.
Do not build wind farms in locations with high environmental fragility or even in places where there are ecological corridors or areas of environmental preservation.
Installation of wind farms in areas that are no longer covered by native vegetation, such as pastures and farms|4|.
Grades
|1|SILVEIRA, Evanildo. The little-known negative impact of wind energy in the Northeast. BBC News Brazil, 06 Oct. 2019. Available in: https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/geral-49858734.
|2|GIMENES, Eric. AND THE WIND CAN TAKE AWAY… A wind energy project threatens to destroy Brazil's past and future in one fell swoop. intercept Brazil, 15 Mar. 2023. Available in: https://www.intercept.com.br/2023/03/15/energia-eolica-projeto-ameaca-destruir-sitios-arqueologicos-e-quilombolas/.
|3| It is |4|VICK, Mariana. Why environmentalists protest against some wind farms. Newspaper Nexus, 26 Mar. 2023. Available in: https://www.nexojornal.com.br/expresso/2023/03/26/Por-que-ambientalistas-protestam-contra-alguns-parques-eólicos.
Sources
|GIMENES, Eric. AND THE WIND CAN TAKE AWAY… A wind energy project threatens to destroy Brazil's past and future in one fell swoop. intercept Brazil, 15 Mar. 2023. Available in: https://www.intercept.com.br/2023/03/15/energia-eolica-projeto-ameaca-destruir-sitios-arqueologicos-e-quilombolas/.
SILVEIRA, Evanildo. The little-known negative impact of wind energy in the Northeast. BBC News Brazil, 06 Oct. 2019. Available in: https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/geral-49858734.
VICK, Mariana. Why environmentalists protest against some wind farms. Newspaper Nexus, 26 Mar. 2023. Available in: https://www.nexojornal.com.br/expresso/2023/03/26/Por-que-ambientalistas-protestam-contra-alguns-parques-eólicos.
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