Micro-wind turbines for domestic electricity generation could create more carbon dioxide than they save, according to a report from the Building Research Establishment Trust.

The trust gathered wind-speed data at a range of representative sites in Manchester, Portsmouth and Wick, and assessed the financial and carbon costs of the manufacture, installation and maintenance of domestic turbines. The results showed that turbines installed in less windy urban areas are unlikely to ever pay back their carbon costs. And only the most efficient, low-maintenance and low-cost turbines positioned outside of major towns are likely to realise a financial payback for their owners.

On a positive note, the report found that domestic micro-wind turbines in windy locations such as the outskirts of Wick and parts of Portsmouth can generate sufficient energy to pay back their carbon costs within anything from a few years to a few months, and then go on to make a positive contribution to combating global warming.                     


Paris Franz

February 2008