Onshore Weather permitting
Permitting remains one of the biggest challenges for onshore wind growth across Europe, holding back the continent’s potential. In Germany, the past year or so has seen considerable work done to solve or reduce these permitting obstacles, and yet onshore wind development continues to grow slowly – with onshore wind tenders going undescribed again and again. Brooke Theis speaks with Wolfram Axthelm, the managing director of the German Federal Wind Energy Association (BWE), and Harriet Fox, energy and climate analyst at Ember, to fi nd out why challenges persist even when permitting obstacles have been addressed, and what we need to see in order for onshore wind to start growing at the pace Europe needs.
ind power is one of the oldest sources of energy used by mankind. While windmills were first used to pump groundwater or to grind grains – the earliest examples date from 700–900AD – modern wind turbines generate more than 12% of the world’s electricity today, saving more than a billion tonnes of carbon dioxide from being pumped into the atmosphere. As one of the most efficient,
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environmentally friendly sources of energy, wind power could naturally help governments reach their climate targets. Yet, its potential for growth in Europe is being restricted by numerous permitting obstacles. These can differ widely between countries, but some of the most common include administrative issues, restricted network availability denoting long waits for grid connections, regulatory barriers and local opposition.
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World Wind Technology /
www.worldwind-technology.com
orld Wind Technology /
www.worldwind-technology.com
Ground Picture/
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