The beauty of wind farms

I grew up in a small town called Conwy , on the edge of Snowdonia , Britain’s first national park. The electricity that powered my parents’ house came from two nuclear plants and one hydro plant. The only windmill in the area was atop a hill beside the New-Agey Centre for Alternative Technology in Machynlleth.

Until recently, my love for the Welsh landscape overwhelmed my appreciation or the value of wind power. I didn’t want to see the mountains and valleys of Wales besmirched by giant, white, bird-killing wind turbines, even if the turbines mitigated climate change.

Two things changed my mind. First, whatever you think of climate change, its causes or what should be done about them, the world demand for fossil fuels will inevitably exceed supply, perhaps before mid-century. We’ll need wind farms.

My second mind-changer is the appearance of the newest turbine designs. Some, especially the 10-MW behemoths planned for off-shore locations are strangely graceful.

But even if you don’t like the look of wind turbines, you might appreciate the artistry of photographer Pedro Correia, who put together a gallery of images of the Alto Minho wind farm in northwestern Portugal. To see the rest of the images, click on the image below.