Japan Looks To Cut Greenhouse Gases

I read an interesting article yesterday before I went to bed. The article was about Japan and their interest in offshore wind turbines. Japan is looking to follow Europe's lead in developing offshore wind farms. The current wind farm talked about in the article, Nunobiki Plateau Wind Farm currently produces enough green electricity to power 35000 homes. This is hardly enough to put a dent into Japans commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, but none the less it is a start.

I know that here in North America some of us have a choice between coal and nuclear supplied electricity and carbon and radiation free renewable electricity provided by one of our planet most untapped resources, the wind. If this choice were available in my area, which I still need to look into, I would seriously consider switching providers. Although I really have my heart set on purchasing some solar panels and a grid tie in system so that when I'm not drawing electricity from the grid, the solar panels are producing electricity for the grid. There are some advantages to that as the electricity produced is unadulterated and green. Definitely a good step forward towards reducing my carbon footprint on the planet.

The choice of electricity providers is a definite step forward, but back to Japan. Japan is looking to harness the sea breeze to further reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, this is a noble step towards keeping breathable air on our planet. Currently they have two 600 kilowatt offshore turbines in the northern town of Hokkaido and they are finding them hard to maintain. Granted that offshore power sources come with their own set of maintenance challenges, these are small barriers compared to the danger that our planet really is in. Small changes everywhere will make a difference. If you don't believe me, think about this, if everyone in one city planted one tree every year, how many new trees will be able to help scrub carbon dioxide from the atmosphere? Imagine the improvement of air quality that would gradually happen over the next few years.

Now what would you prefer? A nice luxurious ride all tricked out or plenty of clean fresh air which is symbiotic with good health. Would you prefer status and choking smog or good health and fresh air? Well that's my opinion, whats yours?

Image source: City-Data.com
News Story: FEATURE-Japan follows Europe by tapping offshore wind for power