The state of Iowa has long been a leader in the area of wind energy development. But Wind Utility Consultant Tom Wind says it all started nearly two decades ago with a school administrator.

"It was the school at Spirit Lake, Iowa, the northern part of Iowa, where the Superintendent up there wanted to install a modest sized wind turbine. It was about 250 kilowatts. And he had quite a battle to get that installed."

Wind says it worked because Iowa has always had very supportive state policies that encouraged schools to install wind turbines — and allowed schools to make that investment in wind with confidence.

"The primary policy is one we call net metering or net billing. And that allows a school that installs a wind turbine to bank the extra kilowatt hours that a wind turbine generates at night, when the school may not need that power. Those extra kilowatt hours go back into the grid, but the school gets credit for those kilowatt hours at the full retail price, so that during the day when the wind doesn't blow, the school can take those kilowatt hours back and not have to buy them from the utility. So that net metering process really is very beneficial to the economics of a wind turbine."

According to Wind, the state of Iowa also has a fund for wind turbine investment and engineers on staff at the state level who can help schools make wise decisions.

After that first school moved forward, some additional schools did follow suit. But, Wind says, it took another seven years for utilities to agree to buy power from Iowa wind farms and for Iowans and utilities to begin to embrace the idea of generating electricity from wind.

"The larger utilities were starting to recognize that there are some benefits to wind generation here. It's pollution free, it's a long-term stable cost of electricity, and so they started to invest in it. But it wasn't until the mid-2000s that it really took off. That was when MidAmerican Energy, based in Des Moines, really embraced wind power whole-heartedly and agreed that it was in the long-term best interest of everybody involved — the electric customers, the investors, and the environment — to make big investments in wind power."

That, Wind says, propelled Iowa ahead to where it is today — one of the top three states in wind power capacity.

The new resource maps and wind potential tables were developed through a collaborative project between the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and AWS Truewind, LLC, of Albany, New York. The resource maps for the contiguous United States, and separately for each state, show the predicted mean annual wind speeds at 80-m height. Presented at a spatial resolution of 2.5 km (interpolated to a finer scale for display), they are derived from 200-m resolution maps developed by AWS Truewind for the windNavigator system^® (http://navigator.awstruewind.com).

Areas with annual average wind speeds around 6.5 m/s and greater at 80-m height are generally considered to have suitable wind resource for wind development. NREL has conducted a preliminary review and validation of the AWS Truewind's 80-m map estimates for 19 selected states (6 Western states, 6 Midwestern states, and 7 Eastern states) based on tower measurements at heights of about 50 m and above from more than 300 locations.

AWS Truewind also developed a national dataset of estimated gross capacity factor (not adjusted for losses) at a spatial resolution of 200 m and heights of 80 m and 100 m. NREL estimated the windy land area and wind energy potential in various capacity factor ranges for each state and the entire contiguous United States, using the gross capacity factor data. The table (Excel 108 KB) lists the estimates of windy land area with a gross capacity of 30% and greater at 80-m height and the wind energy potential from development of the "available" windy land area after exclusions. These areas are generally considered to have suitable wind resource for wind development. The "Installed Capacity" is the potential megawatts (MW) of rated capacity that could be installed on the available windy land area, and the "Annual Generation" is the estimated annual wind energy generation in gigawatt-hours (GWh) that could be produced from the installed capacity. NREL reduced the wind potential estimates by excluding areas unlikely to be developed such as wilderness areas, parks, urban areas, and water features (see Wind Resource Exclusion Table in the Excel file for more detail).

NREL also produced graphs showing the wind resource potential above a given gross capacity factor at both 80-m and 100-m heights. The wind potential graph for the contiguous United States is available (PDF 106 KB) Download Adobe Reader. Additional wind potential graphs and tables are included for each state.

This is the first comprehensive update of the wind energy potential by state since 1993. NREL has worked with AWS Truewind for almost a decade on updating wind resource maps for 36 states and producing validated maps for 50-meter height above ground. U.S. Department of Energy's Wind Powering America project supported the mapping efforts.

More Information

• State Wind Resource Estimates Webinar

  The National Renewable Energy Laboratory hosted a one-hour Webinar to discuss the new wind potential estimates and maps. Audio and text versions of the Webinar are available.

This presentation gives a broad yet comprehensive overview of wind energy in the United States. It uses maps and charts to quickly show the past and current status of wind energy development issues in the United States. Illustrations include:

• Rotor diameter and energy output increases as commercial wind technology evolves in the United States between 1980 and 2015.
• Increased turbine size, research and development advances, and manufacturing improvements increased the amount of energy wind turbines produce, thus contributing to decreased wind energy costs and making wind energy competitive in today's wholesale energy market.
• The United States has experienced 4 years of strong growth. In 2008, the United States led the world in wind capacity additions and in cumulative capacity.
• The United States lags behind other countries for wind as a percentage of electricity consumption. Wind represents just 1.9% of the United States' electricity supply, while that percentage is as high as 20% in Denmark, 12% in Spain, 11% in Portugal, 9% in Ireland, and 7% in Germany. The prospects for future growth are substantial.
• A map of the United States shows installed wind capacity today compared to 1999.
• Wind power drivers include declining wind costs, fuel price uncertainty, federal and state policies, economic development, environment, public support, green power, energy security, and carbon risk.
• Slides illustrate the generation cost of wind compared to other generation sources, natural gas and coal historic prices, wind cost drivers (steel prices, copper prices), and carbon dioxide prices significantly increasing the cost of coal.
• A map of the United States illustrates Renewable Portfolio Standards by state. Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) is the term for legislation mandating that power suppliers obtain a percentage of their power mix from renewable resources. The demand for renewable energy is greater than the amount that can be supplied at the current time.
• A map of the United States shows states with green power programs.
• A slide shows some wind energy investors; another slide illustrates that windy rural areas need economic development. Economic development impacts discussed are land lease payments, local property tax, and jobs.
• A map of the United States shows that soaring demand for wind energy spurs the expansion of U.S. wind turbine manufacturing.
• A slide lists environmental benefits: no sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, no particulates, no mercury, no carbon dioxide, no water.
• A slide highlights water issues.
• A slide highlights case studies and local ownership models.
• A slide lists key wind power issues.
• A slide discusses the 20 percent wind scenario, market challenges, job creation, water savings, carbon savings, and the resulting costs and benefits.
• The conclusion is that 20% wind energy penetration is possible; 20% penetration is not going to happen under business as usual scenario; policy choices will have a large impact on assessing the timing and rate of achieving a 20% goal; key issues are: market transformation, transmission, project diversity, technology development, policy, and public acceptance.

The Wind Cooperative of the Year Award, created by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association and DOE's Wind Powering America outreach and education initiative, recognizes electric cooperatives that demonstrate a high degree of leadership in advancing U.S. wind power. The criteria used to judge the nominees include corporate leadership, innovative marketing, benefits to customers, and project creativity. A panel of wind industry, government, national laboratory, and electric cooperative experts selected Kodiak Electric Association for the award over eight other nominated electric cooperatives from across the United States.

• New England Wind Forum Returns
• Wind Projects Sprout throughout New England
• Hot Topics
• Commercial-Scale Wind Project Update
• Community-Scale and Customer-Sited Wind Project Update
• State and Regional Wind Policy Updates
• Federal Policy Initiatives
• Perspectives
• Small Wind Corner
• Events

The video opens with a photo of the Pocatello Community Charter School

Photo of the school with a solar panel on an entryway. The solar panel was added in 2007.

Photo of a woman holding a "Pubic Notice" sign. It is the first permit for a wind turbine in Pocatello.

Photo of the wind turbine's nacelle and blades in boxes from Southwest Windpower.

Photo of the wind turbine tower arriving on the back of a semi truck trailer.

Photo of Brady marking the gas and power lines to avoid while digging.

STRATA and ProBuilders begin soil analysis.

Photo of two men measuring soil conditions.

Photo of large digging equipment being used to dig deep to fully analyze the soil.

Rocky Mountain Engineering and Surveying provided blueprints for the foundation.

Payne Engineering provided blueprints for wiring.

Ted (Booth Architecture), Rodger (R & S Construction) and Jeremy (Rocky Mountain) look at blueprints.

Ron (Dykman Construction, Inc—DCI) and Rodger pinpoint the foundation location.

Digging begins.

A photo of the backhoe operator.

Workers assess the hole to see how close they are to the needed eight feet.

A man stands in the large cylindrical hole that the backhoe operator carved.

Jesse compacts the fill dirt that was added for support.

A photo of a dog panting as workers continue in the background.

A Lowe's Toolbox for Education grant kick-stared the project.

Photos of workers enjoying time off.

Conduit is "stubbed" out the side of the hole for the electrical wires to come later.

Jason and Heath from DCI assemble the foundation bolt kit.

A frame is added on top of the hole to keep the foundation base centered while concrete is poured.

A photo of the Pocatello Building Department's vehicle. The city has to inspect the project along the way.

A photo of the inspector at the site.

Pocatello Ready Mix arrives with concrete.

Workers and students watch the concrete pour.

Concrete begins to fill the foundation hole.

A photo of the hole almost full of concrete.

Jason and Heath smooth and slope the concrete cap.

After the concrete is smoothed, the crew waits for it to cure.

Tim, in red, former PCCS student and Eagle Scout, organizes a work project.

Workers clear weeds and grasses while the tower waits laying in the grass.

A photo of a backhoe digging a trench. Underground wiring will go from the turbine to the school.

Workers look for the conduit stubs next to the foundation while the backhoe begins to dig.

The stubs are located.

Photo of the long curvy trench. The trench is ready for the conduit and wires.

Ralph with Intermountain Electric prepares the panel box.

Ralph pulls wires through the tower while it is still laying on the ground.

Ralph energizes the nacelle.

Pocatello student council members assemble the blades.

Boise State University student, Ken, helps with the blades.

Students tighten the bolts.

A photo of the students holding the blade assembly.

A photo of the students and blade assembly laying on the ground. The blades are slightly taller than the student council members.

Parent volunteer, Rick, and Mark from Idaho National Laboratory level the foundation.

Workers and a student chisel away bits of concrete during leveling.

Workers and a student check bolt threads.

A photo of the crane and bucket truck from H & H Utility.

A photo of the crane moving the tower. Ruben guides the tower, with its wires ready, as the crane moves it.

Workers carry the heavy nacelle and wire it.

A photo of two students applying a special coating to bolts. Bolts that attach to the nacelle to the tower need a special coating.

A photo of Dr. Martin supervising the installation.

A photo of the tower and nacelle. Getting ready for the blade assembly.

A photo of students carrying the blade assembly to the nacelle and tower and winding the blade assembly to the nacelle.

Todd from Boise State inspects the blade/nacelle assembly.

Workers verify the nose attachment with instructions.

A photo of workers threading wires from the tower through the conduit.

A photo of the installation and Sandy from Renaissance Engineering and Design (red hat) explaining the installation to two students.

Photos of a crane lifting the wind turbine and tower into place.

A photo of workers guiding and setting the tower.

Workers tighten the bolts while Rick in the background keeps the blades stable.

A photo of Mark connecting the wires from the tower to the wires in the trench.

A photo of workers in the bucket preparing to install a sensing antenna.

A photo of Ruben in the bucket removing the ropes from the erect turbine that helped transport the tower.

A photo of Ken in the bucket at the nacelle attaching the antenna.

A photo of Ralph and L.D. from Big Dog Internet verifying their electrical work as they see the meter move.

A photo of a worker standing back admiring the installed wind turbine.

A photo of additional project sponsors (Sierra Club and Nordic Windpower) who provided significant support.

A photo of Jeremy from SignUp who made their project sign.

A photo of Mrs. Kurtz' husband, Gene, installing the sign on the school building.

A photo of the t-shirts made by Teton Tiedye and Falling Rock Productions.

A photo of the back of the t-shirts. Sponsors are listed.

Photos of kids and parents pulling weeds to prepare for the dedication.

Eagle Scout project volunteers clear weeds and grasses for slate benches.

A photo of Mrs. Welch carrying a large bag of weeds that she pulled.

A photo of the school with students raking and cleaning in preparation for the dedication.

A crowd gathers for the ribbon cutting and dedication.

A photo of a woman playing a guitar. Kids sang the lyrics to the tune of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight."

A photo of Lowe's employees. Lowe's led the ranks of the project's sponsor "thank yous."

Emma and Susannah cut the ribbon while the Pocatello Chiefs and Mayor Roger Chase observe.

A photo of a bulletin board in the school. Energy education begins with a documentation bulletin board.

A photo of a map of the United States. This wind farm map will soon be out of date because wind power is growing so fast.

A photo of the Pocatello SkyStream Wind Turbine Web site. It provides the wind turbine data and charts online.

A photo of a haiku board with a picture of a wind turbine and the sun in the main hall of the school.

A photo of a wind turbine coloring project by student. It says, "Towering Flower. Shining pedals in the sky. I'm a wind turbine."

A photo of another wind turbine coloring project by a student. It says, " The Wind Turbine Parts. Turbines have these parts. The nacelle is the big brain. The tower and blades."

A photo of librarian Mrs. Schmidt holding signed books donated by the author's company, Mortenson Construction. Mortenson also provided a song to accompany the book.

An aerial photo of a group of people standing underneath the installed SkyStream wind turbine.

Disclaimer of Endorsement

Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or Alliance . The views and opinions of authors expressed in the available or referenced documents do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or Alliance.

Audio and text versions of the Webinar are available (WMV 11.2 MB) Download Windows Media Player. Time: 01:03:28. Text Version (PDF 153 KB), Randy Udall's presentation (PDF 6.9 MB) Download Adobe Reader.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory hosted a one-hour Webinar to discuss the new wind potential estimates and maps that were recently posted to the U.S. Department of Energy Wind Powering America Web site. Dennis Elliott, Marc Schwartz, and Donna Heimiller of NREL and Michael Brower of AWS Truewind discussed the methodology, products, and results of this project. Subjects covered in the presentation included the wind resource data used in the assessment, validation of the data, the approach and methods used to estimate the wind potential, and analysis of the uncertainties in the estimates. A question and answer session followed at the end of the presentations.