Life Cycle Analysis of Ecological Impacts of an Offshore and a Land-Based Wind Power Plant

Abstract

This study deals with the problems connected with the benefits and costs of an offshore wind power plant in terms of ecology. Development prospects of offshore and land-based wind energy production are described. Selected aspects involved in the design, construction, and operation of offshore wind power plant construction and operation are presented. The aim of this study was to analyze and compare the environmental impact of offshore and land-based wind power plants. Life cycle assessment analysis of 2-MW offshore and land wind power plants was made with the use of Eco-indicator 99 modeling. The results were compared in four areas of impact in order to obtain values of indexes for nonergonomic (impact on/by operator), nonfunctional (of/on the product), nonecological (on/by living objects), and nonsozological impacts (on/by manmade objects), reflecting the extent of threat to human health, the environment, and natural resources. The processes involved in extraction of fossil fuels were found to produce harmful emissions which in turn lead to respiratory system diseases being, thus, extremely dangerous for the natural environment. For all the studied areas, the impact on the environment was found to be higher for land-based wind power plants than for an offshore wind farm.