Monday, October 24, 2016

Trump and His Wind Problem

By: Kaitlyn Carter

Background
Donald Trump never fails to shock us with his often outlandish and interesting ideas. He has made claims again and again about the things of science that, honestly, makes no sense.  He is very uninformed, and over opinionated. Most of the time I wonder if he even thinks about what he is saying, or if he just spews out words. However, that is an entire blog in and of it’s self. In 2012, Trump made the claim that “not only are wind farms disgusting looking, but even worse they are bad for people's health”. There are two things wrong with his sentence- not including his grammar. In my opinion, wind farms can greatly enhance scenery. Especially compared to smog billowing out of factories.  More importantly, his claim that wind farms are bad for people’s health is far from the truth.

Purpose of blog
This blogs purpose it to shed some light on the pros of the energy source of wind farms. Wind farms allow us to have energy, but they also allow us to have clean air and water.  They conserve water and land. Wind farms also bring revenue, and they help our economy to thrive.  All of these points will only positively influence the health of Americans.

Evidence
One of the first reasons that Trumps statement is false is that wind turbines actually are the cleanest way to produce energy. Plants that use coal, natural gas, and other fossil fuels can cause bad air qualities.  When there is a high level of pollutant in the air it can be a great hindrance to those in that community. Those with asthma and other respiratory diseases or dysfunctions can be seriously affected by poor air quality.  It sounds to me like these green wind farms can help save a lot of people from the discomforts that can come from inversions, and other circumstances where the air quality is bad. A study was done that proved that the emissions from fossil fuels vary from state to sate.  The benefit of wind farms is that they displace a much smaller percentage of carbon dioxide than the varying emissions of the fossil fuel plants.

Another reason that wind farms can be a great benefit to society is that it can maintain the environment. Mining for coal can destroy land.  Wind farms may be spread over a large sum of land, but the mills themselves do not cause a hindrance to farming or livestock. Wind turbines also conserve and keep our water sources clean. It is said, “producing the same amount of electricity can take about 600 times more water with nuclear power than wind, and about 500 times more water with coal than wind.” Not only does wind turbines help us take care of our environment, but also it is more effective than other forms of energy.  There is one downside that was shown in a study done with bats.  According to the researchers, “large numbers of bats are killed at utility-scale wind energy facilities, especially along forested ridge tops in the eastern United States.” The researchers like the idea of the clean energy source that wind turbines yield, however, they want those who install them to do their research so that the population of bats is not negatively affected.

Another great benefit of wind farms is that it creates revenue.  This clean energy saves us tons of money every year because it uses practically no water. It is said, “since 2008, the U.S. wind industry has generated more than $100 billion in private investment.” A higher economy and more money in more people’s pockets will benefit the health of Americans.  Financial struggle is a huge catalyst to mental illness such as depression or anxiety.  It is said that most disputes in marriages are cause from financial struggle.  There is nothing like the stress that comes when you aren’t sure how you are going to feed your family, or pay for your mortgage. The more that wind farms can pump cash into our economy, the more Americans can have the opportunities to support and provide for each other.

Conclusion
In sum, I believe that it is clear that Donald Trump’s claim that wind farms are deterrent to the health of the population is uninformed and incorrect.  There are many healthy benefits to wind turbines.  To name a few would be clean air, water, and a boost to the economy.  All of these reasons, among others, help the health and well being to the citizens of the United States of America.

Citations



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