Wind turbines on the South Downs

James (host), Martin, Giles, Dirk, Carolyn, Kevin
(James_Tasker [at] btinternet.com)

  • The South Downs was traditionally a location for windmills.
  • We have to pursue all avenues of energy reduction, including wind if there is to be an impact on global warming.
  • Where did all the windmills used to be? There is a proposal for the reconstruction of a traditional windmill at Juggs Rd for energy conservation .
  • Conflict between utilitarian attitude and perceived aesthetic. The proposed modern wind turbine at Glyndebourne has polarised opinion.
  • Wind is variable and turbine contribution is considered insignificant by some.
  • Build windmills where there is a lot of wind e.g Scotland or offshore, not on the South Downs. However the generation should be near the user to save transmission losses.
  • The traditional windmill restoration proposal for Juggs Road produces enough power for 3 or 4 homes. Windmill on top of your house can be ineffective if wind speed is low. Defra website tells you average windspeed for your area.
  • Defra in favour of wind turbines.
  • Wavepower good to invest in and Lewes is close to the sea and the Ouse estuary.
  • Tidepower has been employed at Rance in France for the last 30 years.
  • Downs are historically a healing environment and turbines would damage that environment.
  • Wind turbine output has often been overated. The key question is who funded the research for a particular project.
  • There is a lot of interest in how much electricity a large turbine or a domestic turbine produces.
  • Formulae for the calculation of power output were discussed.
  • Each house consumes around 4 to 5Mw hours of electricity per year. How many turbines would you need to power Lewes? A rough calculation on the Glyndebourne turbine was undertaken, about 20 or 30 for 7000 houses.
  • It’s almost constantly windy on Malling estate
  • Wind tunnel down the Ouse Valley Hamsey-Landport
  • Tidal Mill at Ouse Mouth would produce a massive amount of energy
  • We have the highest tides in the world
  • Tidal barrages will affect the ecology at the water’s edge, fish in river, so you’ll get all that objection
  • Does anyone know of any wind turbine applications?
  • In Austria, people build their own private turbines
  • There are 1000s of wind turbines in Austria
  • 25m turbine produces 1Mw at 15 metres per sec wind speed
  • Downs avg wind speed 6.5m per sec

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