Humans have been harvesting wind power since the ancient Phoenician civilization who first took advantage of the wind to use in sailboats. Since then, the wind has been used for many different purposes, from powering pumps in wells to a variety of mechanical uses. Today, a primary use of the wind is to generate electricity. Wind energy accounts for a fraction of all renewable energy sources, which is a fraction of the global energy market, currently making wind a small part on the global energy stage. While wind does not have the current capacity of oil, natural gas, or coal, it does have a very high potential to generate electricity. As technology improve and costs decrease, wind can become a bigger part of global energy production.

Wind is an attractive energy source for the future because of its renewable nature. Once the turbines are in place, no greenhouse gases are released during electricity production. Being a clean energy source will make wind power important in moving forward as climate change continues to become a prominent issue. The wind is a plentiful resource that will be around as long as the sun is shining, so electricity can be produced continuously. The overall potential for wind power is around twenty times the current energy usage rate. Although this amount will never be reached due to technology limitations and that not all wind can be harvested, there is still tremendous room for growth in the wind energy industry that can augment wind’s share in the energy production market. Turbines make efficient use of space as they can be placed on farms or out in the ocean, making use of areas that would not have been used otherwise. Because of this efficient use of space and the clean, renewable nature of it, progressing wind energy will be good for the environment.

By now wind would have made great strides to being a major component of the energy market had it not been for economic constraints. Compared to the fossil fuel sources, wind energy is still expensive. The high price relative to other sources is a result of the wind industry not being as developed as some of the traditional sources for energy. Most of the infrastructure needed for traditional sources is already in place, such as refineries and power plants, making it easy to expand. For the wind market to expand, however, new infrastructure is needed. Turbines must be built and the wind farms need to be set up. The production and installation of the turbines is what drives the price of wind so high, as operational costs are rather low. As more turbines are put in place and technology improves, the price for wind will decrease further.

In recent decades, society has been looking to make a transition to using less fossil fuels and more renewable energy sources. Wind energy can fulfil that role for society by generating clean and renewable energy. As technology and infrastructure improve, wind power will be able to produce energy on large scales and covering large portions of the population. This system has already been proven in smaller countries; Denmark plans to run on 50% wind power by 2020 and to be free of fossil fuels by 2050. But wind power is not a perfect source, and there are many in society that will not feel all the benefits. Because wind power is more expensive than other sources, this will hinder those already pressed by financial burdens. Wind power is also not where it is needed most. More and more of the global population is beginning to live in urban areas over outside of cities. This creates an issue for wind as the best areas for generation are far outside cities, creating the need for long transmission lines. Wind cannot be generated at all times as the wind does not always blow or can bow too hard in the case of a strong storm. With inconsistent production and much needed development in storage technology, the wind may leave some people in the dark. While the wind does have many promising aspects looking toward the future, development is need to make wind a real component of the future energy market. With government subsidies fueling further development in the industry, wind may become a major contributor sooner rather than later.

 

http://energy.gov/eere/wind/advantages-and-challenges-wind-energy

http://energy.gov/science-innovation/energy-sources/renewable-energy/wind

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/tech/wind-power