Wind Energy: Tools and Resources to Inform Decision Making
In order to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, the U.S. Department of Energy is proposing that by 2030 twenty percent of the nation’s electricity will be supplied by wind power. This would entail a nearly twenty-fold increase over today’s wind power electricity production.
While the cost of wind power is already competitive with hydrocarbon power production, there are many issues and obstacles that need to be addressed. In New York State there has been a steady increase in proposed wind energy development, both small and large scale. Cornell Cooperative Extension’s goal is to provide unbiased wind energy information to our Extension educators and to our stakeholders recognizing that there are community and ecological impacts, as well as economic considerations. We have compiled resources that we hope will be of use in the educational process and in fostering constructive community dialogue around ethical, planning, land use and technology issues.