A grouping of wind turbines used for the collection of wind energy, typically to be distributed to the surrounding areas, is known as a wind turbine farm. Wind turbine farms, sometimes simply called wind farms, usually cover significant expanses of land, as the turbines can be quite large. Wind farms vary in size, and there is no explicit definition of what constitutes the use of the word "farm." Sometimes, a wind turbine farm will contain only a handful of turbines, while other wind farms have several hundred. People use wind farms to capitalize on the efficiency, cleanliness, and abundance of wind energy.
A wind turbine farm can be constructed at any of a variety of different sites, though a few places have proven to be generally more effective than others. Flat, open areas are effective because there is little to block the wind, but they are not as effective as sites off the shore of a large body of water. A wind turbine farm can be constructed several miles offshore to capitalize on the wind caused by the effects of temperature changes near the water. Some are built even farther offshore with even greater gain, though it can be quite costly to construct wind farms far offshore in deep and rough water.
A wind turbine farm is very expensive to produce, but carries with it many clear benefits. Wind energy is completely clean, unlike the energy produced through the burning of fossil fuels. It is also renewable; while the supply of fossil fuels will eventually be depleted, there is an endless supply of wind to power wind farms. While there is no doubt that a wind turbine farm is quite costly, sometimes building one can lead to tax credits and excess energy that can be sold to power companies. In locations that get only small amounts of wind, though, it is extremely difficult to justify the cost of constructing even one turbine.
The aesthetics of wind turbines and wind turbine farms is an issue that has come up in many different cases as the prominence of wind farms increases. Many find wind farms to be awe-inspiring and beautiful because of their size and sleek designs. Others, however, consider them a blight on the land as they often dominate many acres of land that could be used for other purposes. Some complain that the sounds they produce scare off local wildlife and are, therefore, harmful to the surrounding area.