Lithuania is a very small country which has the total territory of 65200 km2 and approximately 3 million inhabitants, and has only a few its own energy resources. During the last decades the main source of energy was Ignalina’s Power Plant that covered more than 70% of all energy supply but it was closed in 2010 by a request of the European Union. As a result, a demand for new resources now is in the center of attention. Last year government ratified ‘National Renewable Energy Sources Development Strategy’ that claims the renewables should cover at least 23% of total energy consumption in 2020 (now it is only 9% of all energy).
One of the most potential renewable resources is wind energy. Wind energy is 5 times cheaper than solar energy and experts say that the wind power plants can be profitable in 8-12 years. Although the climate in Lithuania is not appropriate for extensive development of wind power plants, the area on the seashore where wind velocity is higher than standard needed (more than 5-6 m/s) is suitable for producing this kind of energy. The territory mentioned is situated in western and north-western parts of Lithuania. There are some parks of wind turbines that produce the biggest amount of wind energy consumed but still are partialy utilized and that gives the clue for further discussion.
Recently local government received many complaints from residents of the region near Baltic Sea. The aim of those complaints was to force government to restrict the usage of wind turbines close to their houses. People claim that the presence of big and powerful wind turbines can seriously affect their health. To be more specific, they typically suffer from insomnia, chronic headache, depression, cardiac disorders and many neurological diseases. These health problems could be mainly caused by low-frequency infrasound that is generated by wind turbines and might be dangerous both mentally and physically. Experts found out that this effect may occur if people live nearer than 3 kilometers to wind power plants. Many wind turbine parks in western Lithuania are built nearer than 2 kilometers to small villages where the number of people usually seeks one thousand.
In addition, people complain about huge shadows that are formed by gigantic wind turbines. They destroy crops due to the lack of sunlight. Also, wind power plants occupy enormous areas and spoil the landscapes. As a result, the prices of the land near wind turbine parks have fallen down significantly. Although the land in this region is not very productive, it still has a potential for industrial sector but now it is harder to attract investors because of decreasing space. Moreover, looking deeply from economic point of view, wind turbines do not create new workplaces and by locals it could be seen not so beneficial even bearing in mind that they have slightly reduced electricity bills.
Another issue was raised by environmentalists. Generally, it is believed that energy from wind power is clean and eco-friendly. However, those wind turbines that are built in western Lithuania damage nature differently comparing to other energy resources. Most of them are located alongside bird migration routes and they are high enough (usually 100 meters) to create an obstacle for birds. Environmentalists are especially concerned about rare European birds that are crossing Lithuania through the region near Baltic Sea. They can easily bump into the wings of wind turbines that are 60 meters in diameter and can develop the speed of 300 kilometers per hour. Although there should be made further research because environmentalists do not give exact number of killed birds in relation to wind turbines.
Currently there has been one deliberate suggestion to follow Sweden and Denmark in order to build wind turbine park in Baltic Sea near Lithuania’s shore. This suggestion could help to solve problems mentioned above. Conditions in the sea are extremely favorable because there is strong wind almost all year round. Therefore it is attractive and beneficial for investors who already have shown some interests to exploit unused opportunities of the sea. Moreover, there are much more space comparing to the land, which in this case could be used for other purposes. People also would avoid negative effects on their well-being because the distance would be appropriate according to all standards. Nevertheless, environmental matters stopped the process of building wind turbine park in the sea as it could still damage the routes of bird migration and one more problem has been added – fishing population of Baltic Sea could be in danger.
In conclusion, in near future energy from wind power could become an important resource of energy in western Lithuania. Nevertheless, many factors concerning environmental issues and human rights should be taken into consideration. By achieving this government could easily fulfill commitments of renewable resources to European Union and investors could benefit from making reasonable and profitable investments.
Aldona Rakauskaitė
[Artigo de opinião produzido no âmbito da unidade curricular “Economia Regional” do 3.º ano do curso de Economia (1.ºciclo) da EEG/UMinho]
Sem comentários:
Enviar um comentário