John Hennessy III,
P.E.
Engineering wind-resilient structures and spaces is a complicated endeavor that relies on both human ingenuity and science. Projects must also mesh with other environmental factors, including falling snow and ice, snow loads and solar conditions. Consulting firms tap detailed climatological data, local wind data and more to grasp how wind affects a structure in a particular spot. But that’s only a start.
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In the U.S., the renewable energy sector has become a major job creator: since 2009, the solar industry created one out of every 80 new jobs, and the country’s fastest-growing occupation is wind turbine technician. While President Donald Trump may have promised to bring back coal jobs, he will no doubt find resistance—in both Congress and statehouses—should his efforts come at the expense of clean energy jobs.
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“Fossil fuels, which provide 85% of our current energy, suffer from two fatal drawbacks. One of which is the fact that they produce greenhouse gasses that are undermining the viability of our climate and therefore our future of industrial society…The other drawback of fossil fuels is that fact that these are depleting, non-renewable resources…So one way or another we will be moving away from fossil fuels as time goes on, it’s just a question of whether we do it in a planned and organized way, or just wait until we can no longer afford to extract the stuff that’s left.”
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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Annual wind power capacity additions in the United States rebounded in 2014, and continued growth through 2016 is anticipated. Recent and projected near-term growth is supported by the industry’s primary federal incentive—the production tax credit (PTC)—which is available for projects that began construction by the end of 2014. Wind additions are also being driven by recent improvements in the cost and performance of wind power technologies, which have resulted in the lowest power sales prices ever seen in the U.S. wind sector.
THE TEXAS CLEAN ENERGY COALITION
In the electrically-independent power system of Texas known as ERCOT, the evolution of the power sector is especially related to the development path for renewable energy and natural gas-fired power. With over 12,000 MW of installed capacity, Texas is the largest state producer of wind-powered electricity in the U.S. Wind resources in Texas are more than double the next two largest wind capacity states combined. At the same time, Texas is the leading U.S. producer of natural gas, and the state generates nearly half its electricity from natural gas plants, substantially more than it generates from coal or nuclear power. Texas also has abundant, high-quality wind resources and solar energy potential.
“If the wind stops blowing in one place it’s most likely blowing somewhere else around that region and therefore across the region, and these are regional electricity markets that we have in the country. Across the region wind itself is not variable…if you spread it out with transmission across such a wide region.”
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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
According to a new report commissioned by the Energy Department, a U.S. offshore wind industry that takes advantage of this abundant domestic resource could support up to 200,000 manufacturing, construction, operation and supply chain jobs across the country and drive over $70 billion in annual investments by 2030.
Boston, MA is full of sustainable energy projects, and CityofBoston.gov created an interactive map to show where they’re taking place.
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PIKE RESEARCH
This Pike Research report provides an in-depth analysis of global opportunities in the offshore wind power market, as well as an examination of key challenges facing the industry.
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