Thomas' Wind Power Blog

-The United States has long coastlines with relatively shallow waters, meaning wind turbines would have to be in these waters closer to people, boat traffic, birds and their possible migratory patterns. Many states have laws limiting the distances turbines have to be from shorelines also.

-European counties have risen far ahead of the United States in terms on number of offshore turbines. This is in large part due to the shallow waters around the British Isles and other shorelines.

-Developing technologies such as floating wind turbines may be the next step for the advancements of wind energy in the U.S.

– Sandy Butterfield at the  National Renewable Energy Laboratory have written articles and papers stating “The NREL has estimated the offshore wind resource to be greater than the 1000 GW of the continental United States. The wind blows fasterand more uniformly at sea than on land. A faster steadier wind means less wear on turbine components and moreelectricity generated per turbine. The wind increases rapidly with distance from the coast, so excellent wind sites exist within reasonable distancesfrom major urban load centers reducing the onshore concern of long distance power transmission.”( Devitt)

Devitt, Drew. “A Wind Energy Plan that Fits America’s Resources.” Power 157.12 (2013): 52-5. Print.