Wind Resources in the United States
A couple of intriguing reports appeared this week about the promise of wind energy. One from a macro point of view appears in the map above, with the red and blue sections denoting the most wind-resource rich areas of the U.S.
The Interior Department said in the study that off-shore wind turbines could more than meet U.S. electricity needs, according to the LA Times. Executive summary of the report here (pdf).
Simply harnessing the wind in relatively shallow waters — the most accessible and technically feasible sites for offshore turbines — could produce at least 20% of the power demand for most coastal states, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said.
But on a micro view, there were also developments. The WSJ’s Environmental Capital blog reports that there is growing interest in home-grown wind solutions.
Plenty of big-name energy investors think so, pouring fresh funds into a company that makes tiny wind turbines for residential use. The idea is to bypass the traditional model of big, centralized power generation stations—whose need for equally large power transmission systems are creating such an expensive headache–to provide electricity on a home-by-home basis.
These turbines can meet half a home’s electricty needs. The caveat: they need at least one acre and plenty of wind, so rule out dense urban areas. But then, cities like LA, New York, Boston or Philadelphia may be just the places to benefit form off-shore wind farms.