The efforts by many stakeholders, game players and individual scientists, researchers and engineers working on wind energy and other renewable energy technology advancements during the past 50 - 55 years is really appreciable and calls for thankfulness. This has been in response to the great concern for our environment and maintaining the beauty of our marvellous planet earth.
By Ahmad Hemami, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
A look for the larger wind turbines (3.5 MW and more) used in newer offshore wind farms [1] shows the results in Table 1. This is only a partial result, and the table has been cut short due to space limitations. The number of stars in column 2 shows in how many sites the same turbine has been employed.
The purpose of this table is, in fact, to address the following statements for a Siemens-Gamesa turbine and a Vestas turbine from either their Environmental Product Declarations [2] (Siemens-Gamesa) or Sustainability Report [3] (Vestas).
For 80 units of SG 8.0-167 DD:
“During its estimated lifetime the wind power plant produces 68,035,000 MWh and saves 58,400,000 tonnes of CO2, which is equal to the amount of CO2 absorbed by a forest with an area of 1,667 km2 over 25 years.”
And for Vestas:
“Our turbines produced and shipped during 2025 are expected to avoid 463 million tonnes of GHG emissions over their lifetime.”
Unfortunately, on the opposite side of the spectrum we have great damages to our environment due to irresponsible acts of aggression in the form of pollution from missiles, bombs and the like, particularly when oil and gas storages, refineries, pipelines, chemical plants, shipping tankers, industrial sites and similar establishments are targeted.
Missiles and bombs contain heavy metals and other toxic pollutants, which are released into the air, soil and water when they explode and crash, lingering often for decades and posing health risks. Cleanup is difficult and expensive.
Missiles use solid or liquid fuels. Solid propellants are a mixture of fuel and oxidiser. Metallic powders such as aluminium often serve as the fuel, and ammonium perchlorate, which is the salt of perchloric acid and ammonia, is the most common oxidiser. Whereas the fuel itself can be not so polluting (because of the amount) the results on targets are devastating. Cleaning up the results on burning targets is an impossible task.
In bombs, rockets and other artillery TNT (Trinitrotoluene) is used, which is more damaging to the environment [4]. Damage to the environment is more devastating than damage to buildings [5]. Without any data, trying to get even a rough number for the amount of contamination and damage to the environment is next to impossible.
In addition to the damage to the environment, the destruction and suffering of the victims is a long-term blow to humanity and human civilisation.
There is a proverb stating that “A madman drops a rock in a well while 40 wise men are not able to get it out” (Figure 1).
Sadly, always there are these types of crooked individuals around at various levels and in various positions. Sometimes even they brag about their wrongdoing! It is more unfortunate and the damage and harm become much more severe when these crazy creatures get to an authoritative position.
Further reading
[1] List of offshore wind farms: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_offshore_wind_farms
[2] A clean energy solution – from cradle to grave: https://assets.siemens-energy.com/dam/12bf8571-a7f7-443f-8a95-b15400f9aaec/siemens-gamesa-environmental-productdeclaration-epd-sg-8-0-167-pdf_Original%20file.pdf
[3] Vestas Sustainability Statement 2025: https://www.vestas.com/en/sustainability/reports-and-ratings
[4] Environment Protection Agency (EPA) report on TNT: https://iris.epa.gov/ChemicalLanding/&substance_nmbr=269
[5] The invisible enemy during war: Air pollution https://theconversation.com/in-war-torn-cities-air-pollutionfrom-
burning-oil-depots-and-bombed-buildings-unleashesinvisible-health-threats-278407
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siemens_Gamesa
[7]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_Heavy_Industries
[8] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Areva_Wind
