http://www.purdue.edu/dp/energy/ Energy Center Wind Energy News RSS Feed http://www.in.gov/oed/2552.htm Conference notes and presentations from the WIndiana Conference, June 17-18, 2008, Indianapolis http://www.purdue.edu/dp/energy/pdfs/Wind-Annual_Data_Report_Summary_2007.pdf Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends: 2007 -- Ryan Wiser and Mark Bolinger, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Report Summary, May 2008 http://www.earlparkindiana.com/windfarm.html Benton County is the home of a large Wind Farm designed and being built by Orion Energy Group LLC. There will be a quantity of 87 generators model sl/sle Gen4 GE 1.5mw Wind Turbines. The Wind Farm's Earth friendly power will be sold to local Utility companies in an attempt to lower energy costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Projected commercial operation start-up date is May 2008. http://www.energy.gov/news/6253.htm May 12, 2008 - The U.S Department of Energy (DOE) today released a first-of-its kind report that examines the technical feasibility of harnessing wind power to provide up to 20 percent of the nation's total electricity needs by 2030. Entitled "20 Percent Wind Energy by 2030," the report identifies requirements to achieve this goal including reducing the cost of wind technologies, citing new transmission infrastructure, and enhancing domestic manufacturing capability. Most notably, the report identifies opportunities for 7.6 cumulative gigatons of CO2 to be avoided by 2030, saving 825 million metric tons in 2030 and every year thereafter if wind energy achieves 20 percent of the nation’s electricity mix. As part of President Bush’s Advanced Energy Initiative announced in 2006, clean, secure and sustainable wind energy has the potential to play an increasingly important role in the Bush Administration's long-term energy strategy to make investments today to fundamentally change the way we power U.S. homes and businesses and to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions growth by 2025. http://www.in.gov/oed/2421.htm State wind working groups are changing energy landscapes across the nation. Since 1999, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Wind Powering America program has emphasized a state-based approach to deployment of wind energy technologies with a focus on state wind working groups. The Indiana Wind Working Group (IWWG) was created by the Office of Energy and Defense Development in 2005 and Program Manager Ryan Brown serves as coordinator. The Wind Powering America (WPA) Wind Working Groups develop multi-stakeholder efforts to facilitate workshops, manage anemometer loan programs, and hold landowner and community meetings. The groups work with the agricultural, energy, legislative, and regulatory sectors, and develop relationships with county officials. WPA Wind Working Groups offer valuable forums to examine issues, gather stakeholders to develop solutions, and provide an effective networking tool. These groups demonstrate that a state is proactive about wind power development. They can be instrumental in overcoming initial market barriers to wind energy and initiating the first projects. The lessons learned from the experiences of such a group provide valuable insight to renewable energy technology outreach and acceptance in other states.