Of Windmills v/s Fossil Fuel

There was this article ‘Help us to avoid windmills’ in Seychelles Nation of 19th May, 2007.

If I remember correctly, the article in question, which seemed to have come from the Investment and Industries Department, recognised the worth of windmills as an alternative source of cheap and clean energy but suggested that they also constitute a potential disfigurement of the local landscape and therefore, best avoided, at least for the time present.

I had a bit of a grin at that, however much I respected the views expressed!

It smacked too much of misguided purist ecology and short-term visions.

It seems to me somewhat naïve to put aside a potential source of clean, unlimited energy on the premise that it mars the landscape and that we are doing all right with fossil fuel!!
That’s the sort of argument best heard from the mouthpieces of the petro-dollar magnates!

In the context of rising costs of fossil fuel and its recognised adverse effects on our natural environment, health and economy, wisdom demands that, for our greater future interests, we need to start making a move towards alternative energy sources. We should not delay in undertaking a proper study to assess the middle to long-term capacity of our country to harness the potential and overall worth of all alternative sources of energy which abound in our land and waters.
We may need to adjust to the new landscape these alternatives will bring, but at least it will be a healthier one to pass on to our future generations.

If it were to be a choice between the continued use of fossil fuel and the alternatives Aeolian, Solar, Tidal, Waves, etc. the long term benefits for our country, indeed the whole world, seems to be already pristine clear!