Driving along Illinois countryside, we saw an interesting juxtaposition. First there was an historic marker noting the gravesite of Mother Jones, who was famous for standing up for union coal miners during a bloody strike, and was subsequently buried in a union coal miner cemetery, as a show of solidarity and respect. A few miles down the road, a county had installed one wind turbine, out in a field, atop a hill that was actually a man-made hill called a coal "gob", or a pile of waste from a coal mine. Renewable energy, silently spinning atop coal waste, near the site of an epic battle between union workers and the mines.
Then further down the road, a massive installation of wind turbines, 185 of them, in an Illinois field, brand-new, 300 mega-watts, right alongside corn and soybean fields. Thesse things went on for a few miles, and there were more across the highway that weren't even on line yet. I think the news release said it was the largest in the MidWest, certainly the largest this year, and was done by a Spanish firm called Iberdrola. It was stunning to see them. I have read that some wildlife conservationists fear that these large wind farms can kill of otherwise affect migrating birds, but the turbines don't really move that fast. And I wonder what happens during tornado season--like the 61 that just hit Minnesota. Sorry my photos aren't that good, but this farm went on for a mile or so.
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