Wind Energy

Wind energy provides only 2% of the total electricity supply. The United States is trying to improve that because it is clean energy, but so many people are really against it including environmentalists. An article by Fox News called "It May be Lights Out for the Wind Energy Come the Midterms." In the article it talked about how wind energy makes peoples' taxes go up. It says a study shows that the states with the most wind farms have the highest electricity bills. The Production Tax Credit is a federal programs that gives out billions of dollars annually to renewable energy companies. To pay for the wind farm taxpayers have to pay taxes for it for ten or more years. The League of Conservation Voters has deep ties with the American Wind Energy Association and some of them are on their committee and together they are a powerhouse.
I did not know that Republicans cared so much about the environment, I thought mainly Democrats only did. But the article does make a good point that the Republicans are getting so much money from the wind energy companies, so they might not even care about the environment, only the money. It is more like a business to them. I really want the U.S. to push towards renewable energy, and wind is a great option in the Midwest, but we need to find better ways to make it cheaper because it is ridicules how we have to pay millions for it and taxpayers have to suffer from it when clean energy should be helping people.
Another article I read from Fox News was called "Bird Conservation Group Challenges Feds Over Wind Farm Eagle Deaths." The American Bird Conservancy has a lawsuit against Obama for giving wind energy companies land permits to kill bald and golden eagles and they are not getting prosecuted by the government. It is for Obama's plan for green energy, and he is giving them permits for thirty years. Wind turbines blades can go up to 170 mph making it like a deadly tornado. Wind Farms in 12 states together have killed about 250 eagles. The U.S government has only sued one company in Wyoming for killing eagles and other birds from their wind farms.
Wind energy reduces greenhouse gas emissions and in the U.S. provides clean energy to 15 million homes. In January of 2015 a law in Colorado will take effect protecting the birds and other wildlife from wind energy. It is the first law in the U.S. of that kind.
I did not realize wind energy is killing this many species. Bald eagles have just gotten off the endangered species list and I definitely do not want them on it again. I was totally for wind energy because it is clean and green, but I am totally rethinking it now. I knew there is always drawbacks to everything, but I did not know they were this bad. Maybe we could use other designs like bladeless wind turbines like the Dutch's Ewicon, so that no other animals get killed.