Onshore wind refers to wind turbines that have been installed on land (as opposed to offshore wind, where turbines are placed in the ocean). Given that onshore wind is abundant and cheap to produce once turbines have been installed, it is considered an effective way to generate electricity at a large scale without creating greenhouse gas emissions.

Wind speeds generally increase as altitudes increase, which is why turbines are so tall. Unfortunately, this also limits where they can be installed, as they need consistent wind flow and can’t be placed near urban areas where tall buildings might interfere with wind flow. Local opposition has also interfered with the building of onshore wind turbines, but public support is rising, especially as people are given options to benefit from local onshore wind. Still, wind turbines, though cheap to run, are generally more expensive than solar panels to install.

Some governments have looked to invest in onshore wind directly, through companies that are at least partially state-owned, for example, (with nine out of ten of largest renewable building nations having done just that). In this case, a portion of the money these wind farms raise by selling their energy goes back to the public purse and can be reinvested in more green energy, for example. Another option is to meet the upfront costs associated with onshore wind by encouraging private investment – via subsidies, for example. Governments first began providing financial incentives to build wind farms in the 1970s when political instability and oil embargoes made oil very expensive. Subsidies can cost money, but they have also proved to be an effective way of getting wind farms in the ground.

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• Wind farms, Onshore (Wikipedia)

• Rapidly scale up zero-carbon electricity generation (Systems Change Lab)

• 30 Years of Policies for Wind Energy (International Renewable Energy Agency, IRENA)

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