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Here's a breath of fresh air: Wind energy is blowing up. Thanks to President Obama's commitment to clean energy and American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) incentives, wind power breezed to the top of the list of new electrical energy sources in the United States last year. Wind energy and natural gas accounted for 80% of new generating capacity created in 2009, according to a fourth-quarter report from the American Wind Energy Association. The U.S. wind sector added nearly 10,000 megawatts (MW) of new generating capacity, blowing up previous industry records.
Wind sector outlook isn't completely balmy. Business Wire reports, "Recovery Act incentives spurred the growth of construction, operations and maintenance, and management jobs, helping the industry to save and create jobs in those sectors and shine as a bright spot in the economy. At the same time, the continuing lack of a long-term policy and market signal allowed investment in the manufacturing sector to drop compared to 2008, with one-third fewer wind power manufacturing facilities online, announced and expanded in 2009."
While China remains the world leader in wind energy, U.S. trends paint a bright picture for renewable energy. We've got a long way to go to catch up to their more robust power production—but the winds of change are blowing in!
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The US wind energy industry blew the doors of its sector's previous efforts with a 2009 increase in production capacity that suggests it has no plans to slow down any time soon. The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) indicated in its recent quarterly report that during the last year, 10,000 mega watts (MW) of wind-generated electric power capacity came on line. The 2009 increase alone increased the domestic wind sector by nearly 40 percent, to a total capacity of 35,000 MW. With this new records, I think they wont need any payday loans.
Historically, wind energy has been used for thousands of years. Sails have been used to move boats for more than 5,000 years. Windmills have been used to grind grain, pump water and saw wood.
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