The wind energy industry enjoyed some success during 2009 despite the economic down-turn and the difficulty of obtaining private investment dollars. There are currently 31 gigawatts of wind in production throughout the U.S. that has reduced carbon dioxide emissions and water use. New projects have increased economic development and tax revenue and 35,000 new green jobs were created according to …
Book Review – The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind
I have a new hero and his name is William Kamkwamba – “The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind.” William begins his story by writing, “A windmill means more than just power, it means freedom.” William was born in Malawi and like many in his country, his family struggled to survive in a country defined by drought and hunger. Unable to …
GE Inks Wind Turbine Deals at Home & Abroad
American manufacturing giant General Electric is striking some big deals in the alternative energy field, especially wind power. TransWorldNews.com reports deals in China and Oregon … with potentially more deals to come … are bolstering the company’s green energy sector: General Electric announced they will provide 88 turbines for three projected wind projects in the Hebei and Shanxi Provinces of …
New Smart Wind Turbine Sees Breeze and Adjusts
A new wind turbine coming out of Denmark will be able to “see” the wind and make adjustments that optimize power production. This post from TreeHugger.com says Denmark’s Risø National Laboratory for Sustainable Energy has successfully tested the world’s first wind turbine that uses a built-in anemometer to adjust itself to the oncoming wind: The system works by using a …
Group Calls Wind “Easiest Crop to Harvest”
A leader in large-scale community wind project development is making the case that wind turbines on farmland would only take up 1 percent of the land but could double a farmer’s profitability. In a piece e-mailed to Domestic Fuel, National Wind’s co-founder and co-chair Patrick Pelstring says wind energy doesn’t take up as much room as some people might think …
Power Line to Convert to Wind Energy Carrier
A high voltage power line that runs from near Duluth, Minnesota to just outside of Bismarck, North Dakota will soon convert to carrying clean wind energy power. This story from Minnesota Public Radio says Duluth-based Minnesota Power bought the 250-kilovolt power line from the Square Butte Electric Cooperative: “We’ll be phasing out coal-based electricity that is currently carried via the …
Iberdola Completes 149-mw North Dakota Wind Farm
Construction is complete on a 149-megawatt wind farm in North Dakota. This post on RenewableEnergyWorld.com says the $300 million Iberdrola Renewables Rugby Wind Power Project near Rugby, North Dakota with 71 turbines created more than 250 construction jobs and will support 29 more jobs while in operation: Missouri River Energy Services (MRES) purchases 40 MW of output from the Rugby …
AWEA: More Businesses to Adopt Wind Power in 2010
A combination of more affordable wind turbines and more government incentives will make wind power more attractive to businesses, which should mean more will adopt the green energy source in the coming year … that assessment from the American Wind Energy Association. This article from Environmental Leader says the AWEA has identified its top wind trends for 2010, including a …
Scandia Proposes 1,000-mw Lake Michigan Wind Farm
A Minnesota company is proposing to build a massive wind farm in Lake Michigan, but some of the residents of Michigan, which has some of the highest unemployment rates in the country, still aren’t pleased about the project that would bring green energy and jobs to the economically distressed region. The Detroit Free Press says that Scandia Wind, a Minnesota …
Chevron to Install Rhode Island Wind Turbines
Rhode Island’s governor has selected Chevron Energy Solutions to install and operate six wind turbines on public land in the state. The Providence (RI) Journal reports that Governor Donald Carcieri made the announcement about the San Francisco-based clean energy company getting the contract at a Narragansett Town Council meeting: “Chevron is a proven leader in renewable energy and a proven …