T. Boone Pickens

Setting it Straight on Wind Energy

Wind farms are a common sight here in Wisconsin, and Milwaukee recently landed a contract to manufacture wind turbine components, so I naturally thought my adopted state was a leader in wind energy.  Wrong. 

Jeff Anthony of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) recently spoke to a packed house at Wingspread and set me straight.  While the US is currently the lead nation in wind energy generation (with China predicted to surpass us shortly), Wisconsin sits in the middle of the pack for “installed capacity” relative to other U.S. states.  The leading state is, not surprisingly, T. Boone Pickens’ home state of Texas.  But I was surprised to learn that next in line is Iowa.  Yes, Iowa.  Iowa captures more wind energy thanCalifornia!