Wind Power: Its Benefits and Challenges

Should we say “NO” to Wind Power?
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Should We say “NO” to Wind Power?
1 Introduction
In recent years, there has been a shift towards clean energy to enhance environmental protection and address the environmental challenges posed by the emission of green gases. According to Lin and Liu (2020), wind power has been one of the fastest-growing renewable energy sources in the world. However, not everyone is convinced that wind power is the future of clean energy or that it will help address some of the current environmental challenges. Deciding on whether to embrace wind power or not requires a critical assessment of the benefits and challenges associated with wind power. 
1 Thesis Statement
The use of wind power promises cost-effectiveness and an environmentally friendly source of energy, but it is limited by aesthetic and noise pollution, modification of wild habitats, and huge capital investment. We should not say no to wind power because of its potential to address the climate change challenge facing the planet and impact economies positively.
2 Historical Background of Wind Power
    Human beings have harnessed power from the wind to generate electricity for many years. According to Wu and Sun (2018), humans have utilized wind power for electricity production for 120 years and have also used wind power for other purposes for over 3000 years. Today, a lot of advancements have been made to ensure that wind power can be harnessed effectively to replace fossil fuels and address climate change.
2 Wind Power to Propel Boats and Generate Electricity
          People used wind power as early as 5000 BC to propel boats along the river Nile (U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), 2021). This is one of the earliest uses of wind power in the world. Over time, other new ways of utilizing wind power were discovered. For instance, in 200 BC, the Chinese were using wind energy to power their water pumps, while Persian and Middle Eastern were using wind energy to power their grain grinding machines (EIA, 2021). These new uses of wind power spread to other parts of the world, and soon, American colonists were using wind power to pump water, grind grains, and cut wood well into the 19th century. 
          The first windmill for electricity generation was built towards the end of the 19th century (Wu & Sun, 2018). More scientists during this period were interested in not only generating electricity using wind energy but also in building functional wind turbines that would enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of windmills in the production of electricity. However, the use of wind power in electricity generation did not last long. This has been attributed to the fact that at the beginning of the 20th century, electrical networks were extended into rural areas through electrification programs (EIA, 2021). Also, at the time, fossil fuels were easily available at low costs (Wu & Sun, 2018). This rendered wind-powered electricity useless during the time, and as such, the utilization of wind power declined si...