This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American
Texas. We're known for big hats, presidents, and oil and gas. So it might suprise you that when the Energy Information Administration asks "how much #windpower is produced in each state?" the Lone Star State comes out on top. Oh, howdy, Texas:
Earlier this week, ERCOT, the grid operator for most of Texas, announced that wind supplied nearly 10 percent of the state's energy in 2013, up from 9 percent in 2012 and 5 percent in 2008.
Full disclosure: as aTexan I am quite pleased that we're ahead of BOTH California and Oklahoma. Energy is an important piece of Texas history, and wind is as much a part of Texas' story as oil and gas and has its roots back to Ann Richards and George W. Bush's terms as governors of the state along with healthy support from the federal government in terms of a $23/MWh production tax credit, which is on its way out.
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Props to @dbiello for tweeting the link!