Where The Wind Is

Every one of America’s 57,636 wind turbines, mapped

Christopher Ingraham, May 11, 2018 (Washington Post)

“…[A massive new U.S. Geological Survey database of over 57,000 commercial wind turbines shows that California’s Kern County, Riverside County, and Alameda County, Texas' Nolan County, and Oregon's Gilliam County are the top five wind regions There are 2,501 counties] with no commercial wind energy…There's a lot of variation in average annual wind speeds in the U.S….[In the southeast,] there are hardly any commercial wind projects…[T]here are also political considerations…[Wyoming] ranks seventh in the nation in terms of its potential wind-power generation…[but] 17th in terms of installed capacity…[It] is one of just two states that tax wind power (Oklahoma is the other), which renewable energy advocates say has stifled the development of the industry there…A number of states, primarily in the South but also in windier states like Nebraska and Wyoming, also lack legal mandates on how much electricity must come from renewable sources…[and] lag on wind-power…[But costs are falling so fast that] the industry is being driven more and more by plain economics…[The Department of Energy forecasts] over 400 gigawatts of installed wind-power capacity in the United States by 2050…[up from today’s] 89 gigawatt capacity…” click here for more

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