Power from the Wind

The following is a brief summary of the book Power from the Wind:

Power from the Wind explains the importance of wind and the power that can be harnessed from it. Dan Chiras, the author of the informative book, helps those intrigued by the idea of wind energy by giving them a checklist of things to consider before setting up a windmill. The book covers all areas of study needed for a solid knowledge of wind energy. After reading this book, anyone can know what wind is and how it can be used to improve the world around us.

http://www.amazon.com/Power-Wind-Achieving-Energy-Independence/dp/086571620X

Wind Power

The following is a brief summary by Kristen of the book Wind Power by Paul Gipe.

This book is one of the main resources Covenant has been using for information about wind power. It goes into detail in the costs, the technology and plans for the future with wind technology. But in order to improve the future of this technology, we must understand the current technology. One of the current problems of wind energy is cost-effectiveness; the revenue made from windmills is not much more than creating one of the machines. Another difficulty being faced with wind power is the safety and size of the machines themselves. These machines are very large and many fatal accidents have occurred, but in the past 30 years there have been numerous improvements. We intend to improve other aspects of harvesting this power just as they have been improving the safety of it so that we may be able to have a resource that does little to no harm to the planet. The information from this book has allowed us to refine what our goals are and allow us to apply ourselves to the task of improving current designs.

Geographic Information System - Renewable Energy

The following summary was written by Rebecca, a senior at Covenant Christian High School, on the subject of GIS and Renewable Enerery.

The GIS (Geographic Information System) is a technological tool for understanding geography and making smart decisions with the information learned. We, as occupants of this planet, need to understand the importance of geographical locations and how they pertain to nature and the world around us. Mainly, this knowledge of our surroundings helps us to make informed decisions about the planet we live on. The GIS helps us pinpoint geographical locations on maps in a much quicker way than doing it by hand or having to do it in a more complicated way. One of the main things about the GIS is that it is interactive. Like the article says: “...it helps explore the complexity of our world.” GIS is not only improving the way we produce and deliver energy, it is changing the way we view our earth's resources. Most people do not realize how much energy is used in simple things every day, such as microwaves, electricity appliances, and cars. The GIS improvement and the success of the GIS product makes energy saving better for both the people and the environment. We are always looking to save money, cut back on things, and provide for our families. Although those are important things to think about, how rarely do people think about conserving energy and making sure things are renewable? How often do we as humans realize that not everything in this world and environment just shows up because it’s there? I think that a lot of people, myself included, should take more of an interest to the environment and God’s Creation around us.

Wind Power in Indiana

The following summary of Wind Power in Indiana website was written by senior Mikaela.

Until 2008, wind power in Indiana was limited. Indiana's first utility-scale wind power facility is Goodland (phase I), with a nameplate capacity of 130 MW (2008). Since then, three more wind farms opened up in 2009: Fowler Ridge (phase I & II) Meadow (phase I), and Hoosier. Indiana ranked 10th amoung U.S. states as of September 30th, 2010, having a total of 1238 MW of wind capacity. Most of Indiana's wind power development has been in the northwest area. In February 2010, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory showed that Indiana had potential to install up to 148 GW of onshore wind power nameplate capacity, generating 443 TWh annually, in comparision to consuming 106.549 TWh of electricity in 2005. According to the USDOE (United States Department of Energy), each 1000 MW of wind power capacity installed in Indiana will annually save 1,684 million gallons of water and eliminate 3.1 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions; Indiana emitted a total of 230,830,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2007.