I refer to John Tanner’s spurious support of wind turbine power generation, without providing any peer reviewed scientific evidence.

The UK generating capacity is about 83.6GW (83,600MW). To meet the UK demand and assuming wind turbines could be used, it would require somewhere in the region of 400,000 1MW or 100,000 5MW wind turbines to meet the present UK electricity demand.

At a density of around 2/km2 this would require a minimum land area of between 200,000 - 50,000km2 respectively to accommodate them.

Wind power is not constant. It’s subject to anticyclones and varies hour by hour, day by day. Additionally wind turbine power generation is limited by ‘capacity factor’.

Typical capacity factor values are 20-35 per cent which results in a 1MW generator producing only 1752 - 3066MW.h rather than the ‘rated’ 8760MW.h.

In comparison nuclear generating plants have low fuel costs and can be run at full, or near full, output with a 90 per cent capacity factor.

Due to the capacity factor, conventional fossil fuel power generating stations have to be kept idling in order to meet consumer demand when the wind power density is too low.

According to the Royal Society of Engineers, European onshore and offshore wind energy is 2.5 and 3 times more expensive per kW/h respectively than gas or nuclear energy.

The true cost of wind turbines has been hidden from the public by large subsidies from governments, outrageous levies on all consumers energy bills and an unconscionable distortion of market forces via legislation and green pressure groups.

Wind turbines do not make any commercial or economic sense, unless you are a landowner or owner of Crown Estate, and will be seen to be a huge mistake by future generations.

There seems to be a total lack of pragmatism and review of scientific evidence when considering alternative energy generation and far too much green romanticism and idealism in propagating wind energy and decrying nuclear energy.

I would recommend that Mr Tanner visit his local library post haste (prior to closure) and educate himself on energy generation, perhaps giving more support to fission and fusion energy rather than supporting and spreading non-scientific green energy myths.

Colin Hewetson Kidlington