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Karl Burkart

Wind power helping to keep the lights on in Japan

There's one piece of good news from Japan: All the wind turbines survived the earthquake and are helping to power some regions of the country.

Thu, Mar 17 2011 at 5:31 PM EST
 6

Coastal wind farm in Japan Photo: Rob Rjzii/Flickr
Kelly Rigg of GCCA, the Global Campaign for Climate Action (with whom I work), has been corresponding with Japanese wind officials on the stability of the electrical grid during the crisis, and has reported that ALL the wind turbines survived the earthquake, even the offshore turbines in the vicinity of the earthquake epicenter. In some regions of Japan, this has saved the day, as power utilities have been struggling to meet basic energy demand in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear reactor breakdown. I've reposted a portion of her post here. Please leave your comments and thoughts below:
 
As the world collectively holds its breath to see how the Fukushima crisis plays out, there's a positive story that 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 Fukushima crisis.
 
I've 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 damage reported by any association members, from either the earthquake or the tsunami. Even the Kamisu semi-offshore wind farm, located about 300 kilometers from the epicenter of the quake, survived. Its anti-earthquake "battle-proof design" came through with flying colors.
 
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 to make up for shortages in the eastern part of the country:
Eurus Energy Japan says that 174.9 MW with eight wind farms (64 percent of their total capacity with 11 wind farms in eastern part of Japan) are in operation now. Kamaishi is notorious for tsunami disaster, but this wind farm is safe because it is located in the mountains about 900m high from sea level. 
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 March 11 to 47,800 yen on March 16.
 
Read more on Kelly's blog at Huffington Post.
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Related Topics: Nuclear Energy, Renewable Energy, Wind Power

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anonymous
Mike W. 03/21/2011 15:15 PM

I am in favor of deep-drilling geothermal, wind, and solar power in the U.S.

That said, Nuclear reactors allow us to cut CO2 emissions and to buy less oil from anti-democratic countries. I understand that modern reactor designs (versus the half-century old plant in Fukushima) rely on water towers to cool the reactors passively in an emergency instead of on pumps. The Fukushima failure seems to show that ancillary structures and piping need to be protected from environmental loads.... More

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anonymous
DiaKris 05/17/2011 21:40 PM

"Improved"...don't you mean 'invented'?

Last time I looked, there is no plan for storing spent fuel.

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anonymous
Eric 03/18/2011 22:41 PM

I have yet to see any disaster headlines concerning solar, wind or wave power. Yet, within the past year alone we can all remember the coal, nuclear and oil disasters. I wonder how long or what else has to happen, for the politicians to see the huge benefits that these alternative can offer us. Besides helping our planet, we can all do without the sights of coal mine collapses, oil spills, and hazmat suits running around.

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anonymous
robin evans 03/18/2011 16:27 PM

its about time people see the benefit of wind, wave and solar power,They are free the cost in installation is low over the lifetime and at the end of their life you dismantle them and nobody would ever know. Nuclear plants are here forever the waste is never disposed of and needs to be stored forever. Lets build more Green plants and No more Nuclear plants

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recycleme247
recycleme247 03/18/2011 10:52 AM

"WIND POWER" Safe and reliable? SHURE! Potential for mass destruction? NO!!
I'm not shure but don't most nuclear plants have 2-6 REACTORS!!! To me that's
2-6 times more of a chance something very very bad WILL happen.
I here we have about 2dz nuclear plants and 104 reactors in the U.S.
Japan is one of the most earthquake/tsunami ready places in the world, and 6 or so of there nuclear plants didn't hold up to well.
A few days ago i read on MNN that in 2008 there.... More

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recycleme247
recycleme247 03/18/2011 10:56 AM

Even the Kamisu semi-offshore wind farm, located about 300 kilometers from the epicenter of the quake, survived. Its anti-earthquake "battle-proof design" came through with flying colors.
SSSWWEEEEEEEEEET!!!!!

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