The dark side of solar and wind power projects

Building and maintaining solar and wind power projects can be hazardous, and industry watchdogs worry that the push for more green energy places more workers and bystanders in harm's way.

By Tiffany Hsu,
Los Angeles Times
August 3, 2011

They can look benign from a distance — solar panels glistening in the sun or turbines gently churning with the breeze to produce electricity for hundreds of thousands of homes. But building and maintaining them can be hazardous.

Accidents involving wind turbines alone have tripled in the last decade, and watchdog groups fear incidents could skyrocket further — placing more workers and even bystanders in harm's way — because a surge in projects requires hiring hordes of new and often inexperienced workers.

Last year, the solar industry grew 67% and doubled its employment in the U.S. to 100,000 workers, according to the Solar Energy Industries Assn. The wind industry supports more than 75,000 jobs.

The concerns have a particular resonance in California, home to many of the nation's largest solar and wind projects.

(More here.)