... Overcoming distance: Windy sites tend to be where people aren't

Since the storage capacity of batteries is limited, researchers are looking into using wind power to compress air, which could be stored and released later to generate electricity. The electric power might also be used to produce hydrogen, which could also be stored and later converted back to electricity, and transmitted via an improved national grid. Either of these, if technically manageable, would resolve the problems of variable wind currents and power storage. If manageable, this would resolve the problems of variable wind currents and power storage.

Since land-based wind farms are often located in areas far from urban centers, the power generated must be transmitted over long distances, thereby putting an extra load on an antiquated national grid and losing power. However, windmills do not have much of a footprint and have been located in fields growing commercial crops, thereby providing additional income and employment in rural areas.

Although offshore wind farms need to belocated in areas with more reliable wind currents, they are frequently opposed for aesthetic reasons. The Cape Wind project in Nantucket Sound has been fiercely opposed by local residents, businesses, environmentalists and fishermen because of the impact on views (and therefore tourists), the problems of navigation and the threat to local fish populations.

The opposite is as easily argued. Many ascribe to wind turbines an ethereal beauty, as accompanying photos attest; they could prove to be a tourist attraction. And sunken objects, such as ships and the bases of drilling platforms, become centers where fish congregate.

Though they have the advantage of more constant wind currents, offshore installations tend to be more expensive than land-based wind farms due to unique construction requirements and costly transmission connections. Despite these problems, they have been very successful in the Baltic and North seas, withstanding high seas, strong winds and corrosion. Since they are barely visible over the horizon, are widely spaced and use new composite materials, they meet most serious objections.

When wind mills were installed at Altamont Pass in California, formerly the location of the largest wind farm in the United States, they killed or injured thousands of migrating birds. However, after exhaustive studies and a switch to larger and slower moving blades, it appears that the threat to avian health