“Don’t Rush to Embrace Unproven Wind Energy”

Marie Stamos’s piece in the Patriot Ledger (8/11/2012 points) out the incorrect assumptions people make about laws like the energy bill that passed in the final days of the formal session in July. When it comes to renewables, people think wind turbines and photovoltaics. They ignore efficiency and large scale hydro–which aren’t included in Massachusetts’ green portfolio standard. They think the 64,000 “green” jobs are in new technologies, when in fact they are “antique dealers, resale shops” as well as “bus drivers, … bike repair shop clerks, floor sweepers in solar industries, waste management positions” and even “gas stations that pump gas into hybrid cars.” Her bottom line? Expect more expensive electricity from long-term contracts for wind and solar, but watch out for wind energy. “There are too many unknowns regarding the health, safety, economics of Industrial Wind Turbine technology for it to be pushed along at this time.”