As the world collectively holds its breath to see how the Fukushima crisis plays out (the quote of the day has got to be: "The worst-case scenario doesn't bear mentioning and the best-case scenario keeps getting worse...") there's a positive story which is not yet being reported.
Despite assertions by its detractors that wind energy would not survive an earthquake or tsunami the Japanese wind industry is still functioning and helping to keep the lights on during the Fuksuhima crisis.
Wind Farm in Japan by rjzii
Colleagues and I have been directly corresponding with Yoshinori Ueda leader of the International Committee of the Japan Wind Power Association & Japan Wind Energy Association, and according to Ueda there has been no wind facility damage reported by any association members, from either the earthquake or the tsunami. Even the Kamisu semi-offshore wind farm, located about 300km from the epicenter of the quake, survived. Its anti-earthquake "battle proof design" came through with flying colors.
Mr. Ueda confirms that most Japanese wind turbines are fully operational. Indeed, he says that electric companies have asked wind farm owners to step up operations as much as possible in order to make up for shortages in the eastern part of the country:
Eurus Energy Japan says that 174.9MW with eight wind farms (64% of their total capacity with 11 wind farms in eastern part of Japan) are in operation now. The residual three wind farms (Kamaishi 42.9MW, Takinekoshirai 46MW, Satomi 10.02MW) are stopped due to the grid failure caused by the earthquake and Tsunami. Satomi is to re-start operations in a few days. Kamaishi is notorious for tsunami disaster, but this wind farm is safe because it is locate in the mountains about 900m high from sea level.
The largest wind farm operator in Japan, Eurus Energy with about 22% of all wind turbines in Japan, is a subsidiary of Tokyo Electric Company (TEPCO) which operates the Fukushima nuclear facility. Right now, it is likely the company is very happy about its diversified portfolio:
While shares in the Tokyo stock market have fallen during the crisis, the stock price of Japan Wind Development Co. Ltd. has risen from 31,500 yen on 11 March to 47,800 yen on 16 March.
Kamisu Wind Farm 300 km from earthquake epicenter by Wind Power Ibaraki
The Little Engine That Could has proven itself once again. What are your thoughts on the Fukushima crisis and do you think it will impact future energy policy around the world?
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Lisa Firestone: The Importance of Psychological First Aid in Japan
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0413/breaking6.html
'A loss of electricity from a crippled nuclear power plant and radiation leaks could weigh on the outlook for some time, the government warned on Wednesday, though it still expects the economy to recover later this year as reconstruction begins in the northeastern areas wrecked by the tsunami. ... "The biggest risks, or uncertain factors for the economy, are when power supplies will recover, whether the nuclear situation will keep from worsening," economics minister Kaoru Yosano said. "It will cause various indirect damage, such as dampening consumer sentiment, but the economy will pick up toward the end of this year."'
But wait a minute — doesn't he know that a majority of the country's wind turbines are still spinning!
Terrorists will have seen the devastation, disruption and fear that can be caused by an attack on a reactor’s cooling system, which presents a much easier target for them than the containment vessel surrounding the core.
http://ecohustler.co.uk/2011/03/16/nuclear-risks-and-renewable-alternatives/
Out of 55 nuclear power plants in Japan, only 2 declared an emergency, largely the result of tsunami following the earthquake.
For a Republican, these moments of suspended ideology are comparatively fragile, so I stopped short of calling him a tree-hugging Communist. Later, he showed me his conversion to compact fluorescents (CFLs) around the house.
In the year 2021, Republicans will do what they've always done: claim to have been on the right side of history all along. So we can expect Republicans to add clean & renewable energy to their after-the-fact list of achievements.
Disappointing? Sure, but this progress with solar/wind/wave continues to move forward. The coming energy tsunami carries a lot of benefits.
But just as corporatized Republicans and Democrats can come together in its support, right and left come together in opposition. When Earth First! agrees with Glenn Beck and Counterpunch shares a columnist on this issue with the Wall Street Journal, the usual team divisions no longer apply.
[I think I lost my internet connection before an earlier attempt to reply was registered, so I hope this isn't duplicative.]
But what should be most informative is the fact that 36% of the wind plant was inoperable because the rest of the grid was down. In fact, wind turbines require power from the grid to operate, but in this case it was probably transmission that was down. So the remaining 64% were still operating only because the other sources on the grid were still operating.
That being said, it would be sweet if every home could afford solar panels with a backup storage system. A few houses ago, we had installed a few small solar panels and they were very beneficial but the initial cost and maintenance pretty much offset any benefit as we weren't in the house long enough...