Britain's wind farms contribute significantly to limiting carbon emissions: study

Britain's wind farms have played an increasingly important role in curbing the country's carbon emissions from other sources of power generation, according to a study released Monday by the University of Edinburgh.

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh analyzed National Grid figures for the power generated by various sources including wind, coal and gas from 2008-2014. Based on the data, they created a comprehensive picture of how demand over time was met by power from the various sources.

In this period, the creation of almost 36 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from sources such as coal and gas were avoided thanks to the power from wind farms, according to the study.

This is the equivalent of taking 2.3 million cars off the road, said the researchers.

The findings show that wind plays an effective role in curbing emissions that would otherwise be generated from conventional sources, and it has a key role to play in helping to meet Britain's need for power in future, said one of the study authors, Dr. Camilla Thomson, at the university.

The team's methodology could also be applied to give accurate estimates of possible future emissions savings for energy developers, planners and policymakers, according to the study, which has been published in the journal Energy Policy. Endit