Norway: wind turbines ripping themselves apart

Wind power has to be one of the most unreliable alternative-energy resources out there. It doesn't help that wind turbines require so much maintenance, are an eyesore, and create auditory pollution. Now, it seems that, along with killing birds, wind turbines will also tear themselves apart if—get this—it's too windy.

Wind Turbines in Norway Being Ripped Apart – Because of Too Much Wind

Parts are flying off of wind turbines in Northern Norway – because they can’t withstand the winds – and the Norwegian Water and Energy Directorate (NVE) is threatening to shut down a wind farm, if the problem isn’t fixed by October 10.

At a Sortland, Norway wind farm, “Strong winds and falling ice have caused the cover, panels and other parts to fall to the ground,” Life in Norway reports. “Noor Nooraddin, the general manager of the wind farm, blamed high wind speeds, saying wind turbines struggle to withstand such conditions.”

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Ironic wind turbine calamities in Scandinavia aren’t exclusive to Norway, however.

As CNSNews.com reported in July, a wind turbine in Sweden collapsed, and citizens were warned to stay away, because it was leaking the very substance it was supposed to [make] obsolete – oil – astonishing Swedish journalists.

“Depending on its size, a wind turbine gearbox needs an oil quantity between 200 (53 gallons) and 800 L (211 gallons), according to a peer-review article published by MDPI, titled “Monitoring the Oil of Wind-Turbine Gearboxes: Main Degradation Indicators and Detection Methods.”

Either develop tougher, more efficient wind-harvesting technology or do away with wind energy altogether. This is just ridiculous. Wind tech is freighted with so many ironies: billed as a substitute for oil, it uses oil. Touted as a way of protecting the environment, it routinely kills birds. Designed to harness wind power, it gets destroyed by wind. Wind turbines routinely lose blades and suffer motor fires that sometimes kill the people who try to rescue the equipment. The turbines uglify the local environment, being an eyesore to area residents. Wind itself is only an intermittent source of energy, making it difficult to predict the amount of available power. Is wind power even worth the effort?