K State is looking at this sort of development with their ag extension.

Another promising application is “Community Wind” where an area (typically rural) can set up their own turbines. This could be modeled after the Co-ops they have now; using either sub-chapter S or K for tax purposes.

I’m pretty sure a lot of the resistance has to do with initial cost.

I have never said that data centers don’t use quite a bit of electricity.

However, the question I originally asked, still stands:

“Why haven’t the large users of electricity (especially those who are in commercial zones) NOT used more wind power?”

A jump in the number of servers–especially lower-end servers costing less than $25,000–accounts for 90% of the additional power consumption, says the study’s author, Jonathan Koomey, a consulting professor at Stanford University and a staff scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The study was commissioned by Advanced Micro Devices, which is touting its energy-efficient processors. Only 5% to 8% of the increase in data center electricity consumption is attributed to power use per unit.

Driving the server proliferation is the insatiable appetite for Web content, such as video on demand, music downloads, and Internet telephony, Koomey says.

The total electricity bill to operate data center servers and related infrastructure equipment in the United States was $2.7 billion in 2005, compared with $1.3 billion in 2000. Worldwide, the total bill was $7.2 billion in 2005, compared with $3.2 billion in 2000.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=197006830

This issue is huge from a power consumption standpoint. And it’s starting to have an impact all over the country. In the Washington DC area, decisions are having to be made whether to supply data centers or new housing with power.

In an information age, Data management and storage will become huge factors in allocation of energy.

We decided to install a steam driven generator to assist in plant power needs. During times of low power usage, we were able to sell electricity back to SDG&E, and reclaimed to cost of the generator in about 2 years.

That’s just one way industrial plants can help. I think when a manufacturing company applies for a license to build, they should be required to offset their power usage in some way by either co-generation, wind power, or using all available energy reduction devices known at that time. They should be stewards of the land, as well as users of it.

Posted by: econ101 | December 30, 2007 at 11:03 PM

Econ,What makes you think they’re the “big users”? Do a little research. Refineries and chemical companies and manufacturers are being over-taken. There’s a new player on the block. And they’re not located in industrial parks.

I remember the energy crunch of the 70s. Yes, people started conserving, and the power companies raised their rates since they weren’t bringing in as much per units serviced.

I don’t know If it’s changed in the last 30 some years, but there was a farmer in Kansas installed a wind powered generator. The power company charged him some monster installation fee for a device to monitor how much power he dumped into the grid, charged an additional monthly rental rate on it, and was paying him something like 40 cents on the dollar for everything he put back into the grid. He finally got rid of the wind generator because everything else became too expensive.

Perhaps if you knew me better? I refer you to this post on Sunday’s Open thread. I am sorry I cannot give you a direct link. Find the post and follow the link. Then you will know me better before we go at each other.

‘Our Pale Blue Dot’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p86BPM1GV8M

Posted by: cosmos | December 30, 2007 at 10:19 PM

Likes Granola?

Just kidding Ben.

What does it mean?

How is their behavior irrational Wes? They get too numerous, food gets low, they move. WHILE they move, their large numbers consume the available food along the way. So they keep moving. Eventually they run out of room but they TRY to keep moving/surviving.

If they just sat in one place and kept doing the same thing as paulecon and unfortunately you embrace, they would perish. Would they not?

Posted by: econ101 | December 30, 2007 at 01:38 PM

One word, Econ….

Zoning.

Make it another resolution to just admit when you are wrong instead of getting defensive about it. Hey it is ok. The lemming myth is very pervasive. The truth surprised me too. No need to be embarrassed.

Now paul I KNOW the growing movement of Christians toward environmental stewardship must trouble you. But let’s not attack religion here. Not even ancient ones that have less relevance as to this matter than you do.

JR, you are absolutely incorrigible. Did you even read Wikipedia before you referred to it? It stated that lemmings do in fact push themselves over a cliff or into water during migrations, even to destruction. “They are at least smart enough to act in the interest of their own survival.” No, they are driven by urges or instinct and not by reason. And, that ’smart’ gets them killed. That sounds like a liberal to me.But whatever, “Happy end of the 4th quarter there anyway”, and the same to you. And, I truly do mean it. I hope the new year brings you much happiness, success and hopefully a little more smarts. You’re gone’a need it kid.Happy New Year!PS: See, I’m working on that New Year Resolution attitude.

As to the other poster”"Lemmings do….what they do out of a desire to survive. It isn’t “group think”

The “desire to survive” motivates the natives to toss virgins into the volcano, as well. That does not make it rational!

They are at least smart enough to act in the interest of their own survival. Happy end of the 4th quarter there anyway.