The case taken from nearadio.no
Published: 05/01/2019 at 11:58
Arne Roger Hansen in the Environmental Protection Association is strongly against the wind farms. - The argument about a deficit in renewable energy in central Norway is flatly untrue. This is only about profit.
On Thursday, it was announced that TrønderEnergi Nett, together with München Stadtwerke, will build four new land-based wind farms in Trøndelag. The power plants are all to be completed by the end of 2021 and according to TrønderEnergi, the power produced will make up for a large power deficit in Trønder in the field of renewable energy. The news was received with great enthusiasm in the municipalities where the wind turbines will be erected. Here, the developments will lead to much-needed income in the form of property tax, improved infrastructure and jobs. The protests, however, have not been long in coming, neither from the reindeer herding nor from environmental organisations.
- The argument of a power deficit is constantly used and I strongly reject this, says regional leader of the Mid-Norway Environmental Protection Association, Arne Roger Hansen.
Profit
- In reality, Norway has a large surplus of power from renewable energy and it is not the case that one is cut off from using this power in central Norway, says Hansen and claims that Norway as a whole has a surplus of between 15 and 20 TWh of green energy.
- Together, these four power plants will produce around 1 TWh. This is completely insignificant, except for the power companies, he believes.
Money motive
- Is it wrong to make money on power while helping to develop green technology?
- No, absolutely not. But at what cost? We have around 10 % of untouched nature left in this country. In addition, around 70 % of all the rivers have been developed. This is about the power industry and Norway profiting from selling power out of the country, he believes.
- As long as we have enough power, it doesn't help to create more power. We consumers do not get cheaper electricity for that reason. The power companies sell power where there is the most money to be made and the state of Norway makes money from taxes on this. When there is a deficit here at home, the cheapest possible power is imported and this is often obtained from coal-fired power plants.
Poland is building down
According to Hansen, many questions are being asked about land-based wind power in particular around Europe.
- For example, Poland has begun the removal of all its land-based facilities and will from now on only invest in sea-based facilities. The interventions in nature are simply too extensive. In addition, there is the question of what happens to the windmills when they are taken down. We know that the leaves cannot be recycled. They consist of, among other things, fiberglass and epoxy, and this is usually crushed and used as filler. Hansen believes that the long-term effect of this mixture is not yet known and that the production of wind turbines is also problematic.
- When it comes to the actual production of such a wind turbine, it actually creates a higher CO2 emission than what is saved by what the turbine is able to produce from renewable power, he claims and adds that in Denmark it has been revealed that workers at Siemens factories have contracted diseases such as asthma and allergies due to the substances used in production.
- We simply do not know what consequences this industry will have.
Greater perspective
Arne Roger Hansen believes that we in Norway have long since reached the goal of being self-sufficient in renewable energy.
- The problem is large countries such as India, China and the USA. We know that 1,600 new coal-fired power plants spread over 43 countries are being planned and built. Demolishing the last remnants of Norwegian nature to produce 1 TWh of renewable power seems completely pointless. It's like peeing your pants to keep warm.
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