Benefit of counsel: success of wind energy requires immediate changes in federal policies

摘要

To meet the demands for reliable energy sources, increased fuel diversity, reduced dependence on foreign oil and an improved environment, existing policies that hamper wind development must be changed. Without immediate action, calls for renewable energy portfolio standards (RPS), requiring that a given percentage of retail power sales come from renewable energy sources, could be little more than hot air. The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) reports that there is 6,740 MW of wind energy installed in the United States, and that with the one-year extension of the federal wind energy production tax credit (PTC), new capacity installations likely will exceed 2,500 MW in 2005 alone. An increasing number of states have established RPS requirements which, to a large extent, will be met by new wind generation.