BIG NEWS: Wind power is now the #1 source of renewable energy generation in America!
That’s according to a new report published today by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), which found that the U.S. wind industry has surpassed 82 gigawatts of installed capacity — enough to power more than 20 million homes — putting it just ahead of hydropower for the first time ever.
According to AWEA, Texas leads the nation in installed wind capacity by a sizeable margin with 20,321 megawatts, followed by Iowa with 6,917 megawatts. Oklahoma actually leapfrogged California in the new report, boasting 6,645 megawatts and 5,662 megawatts, respectively. Wind energy is also a rapidly growing source of jobs. More than 100,000 people were employed by the U.S. wind industry last year, an increase of 32 percent from 2015.
Learn about the Energy Department’s work to support wind energy deployment and lower costs across the nation: https://energy.gov/eere/
