While climate change activists look to renewable energy sources like wind power as a way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, some new research suggests that a warming planet could make that goal more difficult.

According to a study to be published this August in the Journal of Geophysical Research, wind speeds in the US — particularly in the Midwest and East — have declined significantly over the past 36 years. In some regions, the researchers found that average wind velocities dropped by 10 per cent or more in just a decade’s span.

The Associated Press quotes lead author Sara Pryor, who’s an atmospheric scientist at Indiana University, as speculating the declines could be caused by warmer winter temperatures in the Great Lakes region. Wind, she explains, flows faster over ice than over open water.

While the science behind the researchers’ observations are not yet clear — and other experts say they’ve detected no such drops in wind speeds — wouldn’t it be ironic if a technology being offered up as a way to combat global warming instead falls victim to it?

Tags: wind energy