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Is there wind in Illinois?
The answer is YES.
Illinois is eighth in the nation with installed windpower in 2009.
That does not make it windy
everywhere in Illinois, but it's a good indicator that wind may be a viable choice for you.
Is there sufficient wind at your site to become a viable
wind turbine site?
That answer is not an easy yes or no.
BUT, the answer can be determined and
that is what we are here for.
While
Illinois is not the windiest state, it does rank in the top 20 states for wind
potential. The critical point to remember is that any site can be a viable
wind site at the proper height and appropriate windspeed.
When you consider the mid and upper midwestern United States, we have a
tremendous wind potential.
But does wind make sense for you?
Possibly. There are many factors in considering wind and most of them are
favorable.
Recently, in an effort called
Repowering the Midwest : Clean Energy Development For the Heartland, there
are predictions for the amount of potential windpower in the several midwestern
states. Below is the table from their report
Job Jolt for Illinois.
As one can see from the first table showing 50.4 MW in 2003 of active windpower
in Illinois to an estimate of 423MW in 2010 to a future of 1,519 MW of windpower.
One also sees that growth in windpower is not alone, there are several other
technologies that can help offset out energy needs. Here is a brief
windpower presentation
from the ELPC.
From the JobJolt effort, it was determined the Midwest has a
tremendous opportunity to use energy in smarter, more efficient ways, thereby
reducing pollution, saving money, and creating jobs. This will produce the
benefits summarized below.
- Reduces net electricity costs by $5.5 billion by 2020
- Saves 290 TWh of electricity - equal to about 100 large power
plants -- by 2020
- Reduces electricity demand 17 percent by 2010 and 28 percent by
2020
- Costs less -at an average cost of 2.3 ¢/kWh - than generating,
transmitting and distributing electricity
- Spurs job growth in efficiency industries and promote economic
development
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