Scotland’s Met Office issued a yellow ‘be aware’ weather warning. This came as winds reached speeds of 115mph on the top of the Cairngorms. Wind gusts reached over 60mph in towns on the north.
For 1stt time on record, wind turbines generated more electricity than was used in all of Scotland on a single day.August 11, 2016
For the first time Scotland’s winds generated more electricity than is used in a day @Independent
— IRENA (@IRENA) August 12, 2016
Way to go Scotland! This Sunday, #windturbines covered 106% of its energy needs #renewables pic.twitter.com/ph46b1kRMK
— Greenpeace (@Greenpeace) August 11, 2016
Even though the winds caused travel disruption and led to some bridges being closed, the country’s renewable energy production received a boost.
Lang Banks, director of WWF Scotland, a conservation group, said Sunday’s weather may have caused disruption for many people, but it was a good day for wind power output.
Banks added that this was a major moment for the country and that was in part thanks to many years of political support. Furthermore, across the year, renewable energy contributed to over half of Scotland’s energy needs.
Political support will need to continue if the country wants to reap the benefits of becoming an economy that doesn’t rely on a lot of carbon, according to Banks. Banks added that they need the government’s forthcoming energy strategy to set a goal of securing half of the country’s energy from renewable energy sources by 2030.
Last year, wind power generated the cheapest electricity in both Germany and the United Kingdom. From 10 years ago, the UK has 25 percent of generation from renewable energy sources.
