The Whizzer eventually whizzes again

The wind turbine on the farm behind the house has finally started turning again.  This was installed in the first half of last year.  The plan, according to the leaflet the farmer dropped round, was to generate green energy for the farm, and sell the surplus to the National Grid.  I wasn't thrilled at the idea of having a wind turbine in the middle of the view from the sitting room, but since I do believe that we need to work out ways of reducing our dependence on fossil fuels I didn't feel able to lodge an objection on the basis that I didn't want to look at it.  Besides, I don't mind them when I see them on holiday in the Netherlands, so I thought I'd probably get used to it.

When it was put up it was larger than I'd visualised, a quantum too large for the landscape, rising up to three times the height of the nearby trees.  A red light on top to warn low flying aircraft (or round here army helicopters) meant that there was no ignoring it even at night.  It did possess a certain fascination once it started working, the blades slooshing lazily in light airs then working up to a brisk whirl when the wind got up, the face of it turning to face the wind direction.  Ooh, I would think, the wind's gone round to the north.  I could learn to regard this as animated landscape sculpture.  We nicknamed it The Whizzer.  Then it stopped working, and men (looking very small) could be seen climbing around on the top of it with the wind turbine equivalent of the bonnet up.  Stop-start all summer, more visits from the engineers, then a while before Christmas it gave up completely.  It was stationary all through the cold spell in December (admittedly there was no wind for a lot of that) but even on breezy days nothing happened.

Someone who knows a bit about novel methods of power generation (he works in the cement plant industry and is your man if you want to know the calorific value of a cow) said that the trouble with solitary wind turbines is they produce such dirty power, the National Grid doesn't especially want it.  But yesterday a crane appeared next to the turbine and lifted off the whole top, and today it is turning again, so it looks like the bearings had gone.  Or something.  I can't think the farmer is too happy.  Even at market-distorting subsidised electricity rates designed to boost investment in green technology it can't be making a decent return on capital, and at the current rate of progress I should think it is going to take an extremely long time to ever recoup the energy costs of putting it up in the first place.  Until I can see it working better than it has so far I shall be opposing any more planning applications for farm wind turbines with extreme vigour.