Wind farm 'a pollution saver'

11th August 2005

CHRIS GARDNER

Building a wind farm near the Titiokura Summit on the Napier-Taupo road will save an estimated 110,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere each year, an energy expert claimed yesterday.

Sharleen Hannon, energy supply adviser with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, told the Hastings District Council's hearings committee, that she supported Unison's resource consent application for 16 turbines on the site beside SH5.

"To put this into context, approximately 22,000 petrol cars would have to be taken off the road per annum to displace this amount of carbon dioxide," she said.

The Wellington-based agency says it is supporting the application because it would make a valuable contribution to New Zealand's renewable energy target.

New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions are now 22 percent higher than what they were in 1990, and for the 2002/2003 period alone, emissions grew by 3 percent.

"It is widely accepted that one of the principal contributors to accelerated climate change are greenhouse gas emissions generated from human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels for electricity generation and transportation," she said.

"Accordingly, in order to minimise the adverse effects of greenhouse gas emissions, any new electricity generation should come from renewable sources of energy, rather than fossil fuels.

She said the agency supported the application because renewable energy developments were vitally important for New Zealand's sustainable energy future.

The proposed wind farm has a 48-megawatts capacity and will generate approximately 175 gigawatt hours annually - enough electricity to supply about 21,500 households a year.

The proposal also got the support of James Glennie, chief executive of the New Zealand Wind Energy Association, who said Hawke's Bay was blessed with a unique and valuable resource.

"We have an obligation to the Earth, the other species on it and to future generations, to live our lives without degrading the environment," he said.

"Of all the forms of generation available to us, wind seems to offer the best chance of achieving that."

Mr Glennie said the era of cheap, reliable and convenient energy was coming to an end.

Broadcasting Corporation Ltd consultant Peter Curtis, who was called by Unison to support the application, said there was a high risk of the wind farm interfering with television reception to a small number of residents.

"In the event that ghosting occurs when the wind farm is built, despite the receiving antennas being correctly installed and well-maintained, the effect is easily remedied by providing viewers with the ability to receive an alternative signal, or provide them with a digital satellite receiver."

The hearing continued today , when objectors were due to have their say, and will continue tomorrow.