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We've already established that wind farms are a patchy source of power and many people consider them ungodly eyesores. The solution? Build them 12 miles off the coast where the wind is much better and only seagulls and cargo ships will be bothered by the aesthetics.

, the world's biggest windfarm consisting of 341 turbines spread over two sites and more than 100 square miles in the Thames estuary. It will provide power for the equivalent of 750,000 homes - a quarter of all homes in Greater London - and could start generating as early as 2012.

So why didn't they start work in 2006? Because the government isn't paying for it. The £2 billion-plus required for the London Array isn't the sort of private cash you pull together over a long lunch, especially when lots of energy companies are starting to get cold feet about renewables.

Happily, three companies - , which means that onshore work starts next year, with the offshore bit commencing in 2011.

This has caused Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband so much excitement, he's started referring to Britain as a 'wind power' rather than just a generator of wind power, to whit:

'This is another green light for green energy ... The UK is already the world's leading offshore wind power and this multi-billion pound project will help keep us there, cut our carbon emissions and contribute to secure energy supplies.'

Related Bloom actions: Getting a wind turbine if you live in a windy area

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