Wind Power in New England

The document advocates for wind power as a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels and nuclear energy, particularly in New England. It details the severe environmental and health costs of conventional energy—including CO2 emissions, air pollution, water consumption, and land degradation—while positioning wind energy as a low-impact solution with minimal land footprints and no operational emissions.

• Fossil fuels are the dominant energy source in the United States and New England, accounting for over 70 percent of U.S. electricity generation and more than 60 percent in New England.
• Electricity generation is a major contributor to climate change and air pollution; in 2004, it accounted for over 40 percent of U.S. CO2 emissions, with coal-fired plants emitting more than all transportation sectors combined.
• Conventional power plant pollution is linked to significant health risks, contributing to nearly 24,000 premature deaths annually in the U.S., including 2,800 from lung cancer.
• Fossil fuel extraction and generation cause extensive land and water damage, such as mountaintop removal mining polluting over 1,200 miles of streams in Appalachia between 1985 and 2001, and the electricity sector using 195 billion gallons of water daily in 2000.
• Wind power has a significantly smaller permanent land footprint than fossil fuels; in New England's rolling terrain, it requires as little as two acres per megawatt, with 98 percent or more of that land remaining available for other uses.
• Dependence on imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) and oil increases security risks for New England, as these fuels often come from unstable countries and the necessary onshore infrastructure could become terrorist targets.
• While wind turbines cause some wildlife fatalities, averaging around three bird deaths per megawatt per year, this is far lower than deaths caused by buildings (up to 980 million) or communication towers (up to 50 million).

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2007). Wind Power in New England. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/wpne-choices.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Wind Power in New England. 2007. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/wpne-choices.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Wind Power in New England |date=March 2007 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/wpne-choices.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2007wind, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Wind Power in New England}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2007}, month = mar, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/wpne-choices.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }