I Was Featured in an Article in KKL-JNK, a Hebrew Language Magazine
I'm very honored to be featured in this article. Here is the English version of the article.
“Wind
doesn’t cost money, and neither do dreams”
Inbar Maayan, November 2008
This
article appeared on Keren Kayemet
LeYisrael’s “Green Window” website
KKL is a Jewish organization that seeks to
advance the preservation of the environment, sustainable development,
forestation, the restoration of rivers and the development of parks, recreation
sites and water sources in Israel.
Translation compliments of the KKL, the Department of Education and Youth, Jerusalem
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William Kamkwamba was only 14 years old when he was forced to quit school because his parents couldn’t afford to pay his tuition. William remained at home to help with work in the fields and spent much of his time in his family’s small, stone hut in their African village in Malawi. The house had no electricity. In order to alleviate his boredom, William began to read books that had been donated to the local library, and when he happened on to a book that explained that wind power could be harnessed to generate electricity, William decided to give it a try. Using the trial and error method and working all on his own, he build a windmill made of wood, plastic pipes and discarded bicycle parts. He didn’t know if it would actually work, but he believed. In William’s story, his lack of money was made up for by an abundance of wind – wind and spirit – and all for free.
William’s wind turbine. Photograph compliments of William Kamkwamba
“At first, everyone thought I had lost my mind,” William recalls, but when the wind began to turn the rotor blades and the improvised windmill started to generate enough electricity to power a light bulb and a radio, the neighbors realized that the boy had managed to create something they had never dreamed was possible.
Time passed. William turned 20. He renovated and improved his original windmill and built new ones. The media coverage helped him to raise the assistance and funds he needed to enable him to study and continue to develop the use of wind power in Malawi. We highly recommend you see the inspiring short film “Moving Windmills,” and also read William’s blog to see how he is doing. You can also write to him there.
William and his wind turbine. Photograph compliments of William Kamkwamba
But not only places that lack electricity need alternate energy forms. The soaring price of energy, global warming and the gradual progress in the generation of energy from renewable sources have made the search for alternate sources of energy and the development of inexpensive and efficient technologies to exploit clean and renewable sources of energy especially urgent and relevant here too, in developed countries where all homes are connected to the electric grid. In 1999, the industrialized countries of the world signed the Kyoto Protocol, which went into effect in 2005. The Protocol requires the member countries to reduce by at least five percent their emissions of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, which is created when fuel is combusted in power stations, industrial plants and cars, from the level measured in 1990, by the year 2012. The way to achieve that aim is to invest resources in the development and implementation of alternate energy solutions.
Why
wind?
Wind is a classic example of a clean, renewable energy resource: We can use it over and over again with absolutely no effect on the amount of wind that remains. It doesn’t cost money, does not emit pollutants into the air and does not create waste. People started to use wind energy more than 2000 years ago. In ancient Egypt, wind energy was used to move sailboats; and later, windmills were used to grind flour in China, Persia and the Middle East.
Wind turbines began to be used to generate electricity in the twentieth century. In these systems, the wind turns the blades of the turbine, which in turn, powers a generator that is made up of a magnet rotating inside a coil of electrical wires. The rotating magnet inside the coil of wire creates the movement of electrons, i.e. an electrical current – and that’s the entire basic principle. You can see an animation that explains the process here.
But just like everything else, using wind energy has drawbacks too. The amount of energy depends on the strength of the wind. The stronger the wind, the more energy can be produced from it, lowering the cost. The problem is that wind strength is not consistent; it changes from place to place and from season to season and at different times of the day. Wind farms are usually built in places that have a strong, steady supply of wind. Moreover, in order to produce a sufficient amount of electricity, a large number of wind turbines are needed distributed over a large area, which some people consider unsightly. Another fear is that in bird migration zones, the turbines could become death traps for the birds, although the test of reality shows that the danger posed to birds by the turbines is dwarfed by the danger from collisions with automobiles and trucks, electrocution, hunting or crashing into the windows of tall buildings. An article on this subject can be accessed here.
The world
is into wind
Despite these disadvantages, wind is an inexpensive, widespread, inexhaustible and environmentally friendly source of energy, and consequently, its use and the development of the technology needed to harness it has gained considerable momentum in recent years, causing the cost of producing wind energy to drop. The first modern wind turbines, which were built in the early 1980s in California, produced electricity at a cost of 38 cents per kilowatt-hour, whereas today, the cost has dropped to just a few cents per kilowatt-hour.
Early last year, the government of China declared that it planned to invest 5.8 billion dollars in the development of wind energy and that it would triple the amount of electricity produced by wind turbines by the end of the decade. The government of England has given the green light to the largest maritime wind-turbine project in the world, expected to produce up to 1.3 gigawatts of electricity, enough to provide a million households with electricity, or one-third of the electricity needs of London.
Spain, one of the three leading countries in the European Union in the area of wind energy (along with Germany and Denmark), has announced this year that it plans to triple its production of electricity from renewable sources of energy by the year 2020, and this past July (2008), the United States replaced Germany as the largest manufacturer of wind energy in the world. Slightly more than one percent of the United States’ total electricity output comes from wind turbines, and, based on forecasts by the American Department of Energy, the proportion of energy production from wind in the United States is expected to rise to 20 percent by the year 2030.
An American wind farm. Photograph by Avi Zeira.
The state of the wind in Israel
In Israel, despite its proven scientific abilities and geopolitical interests, the use of alternate energy in general, and specifically wind energy, is lagging somewhat behind the rest of the developed world. In the mid-1980s, a survey conducted in Israel measured wind strength in different areas of the country, and a national map of possible sites for the establishment of wind farms was drafted. (The survey can be accessed here). According to the survey, Israel has suitable wind conditions to produce electricity from wind energy, especially in the Golan Heights, the Galilee and valley areas. Despite this, little electricity has been produced from wind energy in these areas for various and sundry reasons, which include the size and topography of the areas, military considerations (it has been argued that wind turbines could create electromagnetic interference with military electronics) and the location of nature reserves and national parks.
The first and only commercial wind farm in Israel was built in 1992 by Mei Golan Wind Energy Ltd. at the Tel Assania site in the Golan Heights. Since then, ten wind turbines supplying about 600 kilowatt-hours of electricity each have been constructed. In all, the wind farm supplies electricity sufficient for the annual household use of 12,000 people. The wind farm is also profitable: The electricity is sold to the electric company and generates an estimated annual income of about one million dollars.
Other wind turbines can be found in Kibbutz Alonei Habshan and Maaleh Hagilboa. The Israel Electric Corporation is planning to build two additional wind farms with an even higher output of electricity in the area of Ramat Sirin (west of Lake Kinneret) and in Maaleh Hagilboa, and during the past year, we have heard news regarding the establishment of a wind farm in the Arava, as well as the planned expansion of the existing wind farm on the Golan Heights.
The Wind farm at Tel Assania. Photograph: Boaz Weil
Many environmental organizations object to the expansion of wind farms in Israel and the construction of new wind turbines, mainly because they fear the harm that might be caused to the country’s open spaces and landscape. One proposed solution is to build the wind farms at sea – where their huge size, electromagnetic effect and noise will not do any harm. Especially effective sea wind farms have been built along the shores of various European countries (e.g. Britain, Germany and Denmark). The costs of building and maintaining such a wind farm are high, but the average wind speed at open sea is generally higher than on land, and this means that the tower of a sea wind turbine can be lower than on land while attaining a greater energy output. In 2001, a study was carried out in Israel to examine the wind potential at two possible marine sites off the shores of Israel: facing the Erez shore in the south and facing the Hadera shore further north. The study found that the potential wind force along Israel’s shores is not especially high and that it would not be cost effective to build wind farms at sea along Israel’s shores.
Marine wind turbines off the shores of Copenhagen. Photograph: John Nyberg
A turbine for every home?
The production of electricity for one’s own domestic use by means of small systems, such as solar heating panels and wind turbines installed on rooftops and in backyards, has become quite common throughout the world in recent years. In June of this year (2008), the Israel Electricity Authority decided to permit individual citizens to generate energy using photovoltaic (solar) technology produced by small domestic facilities for individual use. The Ministry of National Infrastructures favors allowing private consumers to set up wind turbines on the roof of their home to produce electricity and sell it to the Israel Electric Corporation. The new policy is part of the program to regulate environmental quality in Israel’s electricity economy, in cooperation between the Ministries of National Infrastructures and Environmental Protection, based on the government’s policy to encourage individual generation of electricity from renewable sources of energy (wind, sun and water). Yossi Keinan, a cigarette and liquor importer from Yavne, built a wind turbine that supplies electricity to illuminate the yard around his house, his driveway and to the air and lighting system for two large aquariums.
Would you also like to build your own domestic wind turbine? Read more about Yossi Keinan’s project and look at these pictures. You can also look up what you need on the Internet (under windmill or wind turbine).
But wait a minute. Before you begin, it is important to understand that the production of domestic electricity using the wind is not suitable for everyone. The output of electricity from wind turbines varies significantly based on the specific geographical and topographical location involved, and consequently only those that live in areas that have good wind conditions and high energy efficiency can build effective wind turbines.
The initial investment to build a small facility for the generation of electricity is estimated at tens of thousands of shkalim, although in recent years. The wind energy industry throughout the world, including the small home wind-turbine industry, has been undergoing accelerated development, and currently, one can find numerous manufacturers and a wide variety of effective and reliable turbines. Compared to the cost of photovoltaic (solar) cells, wind turbines are relatively inexpensive and have significantly higher energy efficiency.
Photograph: Shaul Polansky
New and fascinating projects
Building a
personal wind turbine in the city has numerous drawbacks: Its relatively small
size means lower energy output and less cost effectiveness. In addition, there
may also be problems of noise, vibrations and city bylaws. The Israel Renewable
Energy Cooperative has been trying to recruit partners to jointly invest in a
project involving the building of wind turbines in the Arava region. A
cooperative is a business model that enables private individuals to join forces
and together develop and build large, highly efficient wind turbines, which can
provide a speedy return on their investment. Would you like to join? You can
read more details about the cooperative and the project here.
Another interesting initiative was made public this past August (2008), when the firm of ALTE announced that it was planning to install an experimental wind turbine on a skyscraper in the middle of Tel Aviv. The company, in cooperation with other developers, also plans to set up wind turbines on the roofs of a number of other high-rise buildings in Tel Aviv. Using the new technology, the wind farm should provide an effective supply of electricity through the conversion of wind energy into electricity for at least 10% of the building's electricity consumption. (The complete article can be read here).
To sum up, Israel uses very little wind energy at present. Out of a potential supply of 600-1200 megawatts, we use only six megawatts, i.e. between .5-1 percent. So while it is true that we are neither Denmark, Germany nor the United States, wind turbines could provide Israel with a significant percentage of clean electricity to replace dirty energy produced by combusting coal, natural gas and crude oil. By making maximum use of the wind energy at our disposal, we could reduce our air pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions, and the sooner we do so, the better.
Special
thanks:
Avi Zeira – Golan Winds
Sources:
Print and electronic media: Ynet, NRG, Haaretz, The Marker
The Ministry of environmental protection
The Center for Educational Technology
Rami Arieli: "Energy – A Multidisciplinary Approach"
William Kamkwamba’s blog – http://williamkamkwamba.typepad.com/williamkamkwamba/
here is the original article in Hebrew:
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