ALTERNATIVE ENERGY, CONSERVATION & EFFICICIENCY

WIND ENERGY

The United States now leads the world in the amount of electricity it generates from
wind energy1 and the potential for developing wind energy remains huge. Wind power
generates just over 1 percent of total electricity consumed in the United States, but U.S.
wind power capacity is on track to increase by more than 45% this year. 2 Over the past
year and a half, at least 41 manufacturing facilities to support the wind industry have
been announced, opened or expanded in the U.S. Those actions are expected to create
9,000 jobs.3

• Wind power in the U.S. could generate three times the electricity currently
generated from all other sources. Existing wind farms currently generate over
9,000 megawatts (MW) in the U.S. 4

• In the western U.S., good wind areas are found on 6% of the land, enough to
supply over five times the region’s current electricity consumption5

• In 2008, wind power is expected to generate an estimated 48 billion kWh—

enough to serve the equivalent of 4.5 million American households. 6

• When natural gas costs more than $4 per million British thermal units (MMBtu)—
as it does now and is projected to cost in the foreseeable future—wind power is
cheaper.7

• Electricity generated by the wind produces two to three times more jobs than gas
or coal development.8

• As of 2005, existing wind farms in the United States were saving 180 billion cubic
feet (bcf) of natural gas each year, while generating electricity at a lower cost
than natural gas-fired power plants.9

• Aggressive development of wind farms between now and 2013 could create
100,000 megawatts (MW) of wind power—enough energy for 25 million homes.10

• Four of the five largest wind farms in the United States are in Texas; the fifth is
Peetz Table, Colorado. 11

CONSERVATION AND EFFICIENCY

• For every dollar invested in energy efficiency in the West, $2.50 is saved.12
 • The West can easily improve its energy efficiency by 20 percent, and save as
much energy as would be produced by 100 new coal- or gas-fired power plants.13

SOLAR

Once installed, solar-power facilities produce no pollution. Homes and businesses can
install solar power on their own—most locations in the continental U.S. have enough
solar energy to meet some or all of their electricity needs with solar energy systems.

• The global market for solar electricity is projected to reach $4 trillion in about 30
years.14

• Advances in photovoltaic technology will soon allow rooftop solar arrays to

challenge utilities. Electricity from solar photovoltaic cells is predicted to become
price-competitive with conventional power generation by 2015 in some regions,
according to the European Photovoltaic Industry Association.15

• In Colorado’s San Luis Valley, the Alamosa Photovoltaic Solar Plant began
generating 3.6 MW, or 44% of its capacity, in September 2007. When fully
operational, the plant will have a capacity of 8.22 MW, or enough power for about
1,500 homes. 16

• A major California utility, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) announced
in July 2007 that it has agreed to buy power from a 553- megawatt solar thermal
power plant to be located in California’s Mojave Desert. At the time of signing, the
new contract was the largest solar power agreement in the world. 17

BIOFUELS—BIODIESEL AND ETHANOL

Biodiesel and ethanol are clean-burning alternative fuels produced from agricultural
crops and other kinds of biomass. Biodiesel is derived from the fatty acids in animal or
vegetable fats. Ethanol is an alcohol produced from the sugars and starches found in
plant material. Diesel engines can burn the biodiesel/ diesel blends now commonly
available at filling stations across the country.

The National Biodiesel Board estimates that in 2006, 250 million gallons of biodiesel
were sold in the U.S. Ethanol is commonly blended into gasoline to boost octane levels
and reduce carbon monoxide and
smog-forming pollution. While corn ethanol has limited potential, cellulosic ethanol,
which is produced from plants such as switch grass, will likely provide a much cheaper
and more environmentally responsible alternative down the road. Many proposed
sources of cellulosic ethanol are water-thrifty crops that require little or no fertilizer.
1 National Renewable Energy Laboratory, http://www.nrel.gov/wind/news/2008/626.html

2 Ibid.
3 Ibid.
4 American Wind Energy Association, “Wind Energy; An Untapped Resource,” www.awea.org
5Renewable Energy Atlas of the West: A Guide to the Region’s Resource Potential. Land and Water Fund of the Rockies and
Northwest Sustainable Energy for Economic Development. April 2003. www.EnergyAtlas.org
6 American Wind Energy Association http://www.awea.org/newsroom/pdf/Fast_Facts.pdf
7 Colorado Public Utilities Commission’s Xcel wind decision, www.nrel.gov/docs/fy01osti/30551.pdf
8Daniel M. Kammen, Kamal Kapadia, and Matthias Fripp (2004–Updated January 2006), Putting Renewables to Work: How
Many Jobs Can the Clean energy Industry Generate? RAEL Report, University of California, Berkeley. rael.berkeley.edu/files/
2004/Kammen-Renewable-Jobs-2004.pdf.

9 American Wind Energy Association, “The Economics of Wind Energy,” www.awea.org/pubs/factsheets/EconomicsOfWind-

Feb2005.pdf.
10 American
Wind Energy Association, “Wind Energy Can Relieve Natural Gas Shortage,” awww.awea.org/news/
news030618gas.html
11 Wind Energy Fast Facts, American Wind Energy Association http://www.awea.org/newsroom/pdf/Fast_Facts.pdf
12Western Governors’ Association, Energy Efficiency Task Force Report, October 2005; www.westgov.org/wga/initiatives/cdeac/
Energy%20Efficiency.htm
13 Ibid.
14 American Solar Energy Society, www.ases.org/aboutre/faq.htm
15 European Photovoltaic Industry Association, Solar Generation2008, www.epia.org
16 The Denver Post, “San Luis Solar Plant Throws Switch,” www.denverpost.com/search/ci_6856305
17 PG&E, at: www.pge.com/news/news_releases/q3_2007/070725a.html.