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From The Oklahoma City Peace House
http://www.journalrecord.com/article.cfm?recID=96396
THE JOURNAL RECORD – - Opinion
Jim Roth: Wind power excellent source of energy
March 2, 2009
A national study shows that Oklahoma wind energy production could provide 9 percent of the U.S. needs for electricity. That means not only cheaper, more efficient energy for Oklahomans, it also would create a billion-dollar industry for the state.
In order for that to happen it will take the business community, policymakers and local communities to make wind generation and renewable energy a priority. Oklahoma has more than twice the wind energy potential per square mile than Texas, according to Tim Hughes, director for the Oklahoma Wind Power Initiative. To give some idea of the state’s potential, a
If you haven’t driven down Interstate 40 in western Oklahoma in a while, you may be surprised when you reach Elk City. It is an amazing sight to see an entire farm of 260-foot wind turbines with blades stretching more than 125 feet across. The behemoths at OG&E’s Centennial Wind Farm in Woodward already produce 170 megawatts, or enough power to supply more than 40,000 homes. They expect to almost double that output to 300MW in 2009.
On a smaller scale, across the nation people are utilizing small wind turbines to power their homes and businesses. Oklahoma-based Bergey Wind Power is one of the leading manufacturers of small turbines in the country. With 500 domestic and international dealers, Bergey is bringing power to all corners of the globe directly from Norman, including war-torn Afghanistan, where utility infrastructure was severely damaged. The small wind turbines provide power to remote areas that might otherwise have to wait years for service. Consumers are using the residential models in conjunction with other technology, such as solar cells and geothermal, to create self-sustaining homes that don’t require any energy from local power plants.
Oklahoma has an abundance of wind energy, but only recently has that resource been developed for production. Before 2003 Oklahoma had no wind power, but by the end of 2006 we were producing over 500MW, representing a capital investment of more than $600 million. The American Wind Energy Association estimated that Oklahoma ranks eighth among the states in installed wind energy capacity. And we are moving up fast.
Oklahoma farmers have been using wind energy for many years to pump water from wells using windmills. In parts of the state, windmills have been used since before statehood to pump water from low-lying areas. And wind has also been used to turn large stones to grind wheat or corn, just like a water wheel is turned by waterpower. Oklahomans have been harnessing the power of the wind since before the days of the Dust Bowl. Now we have the opportunity to take an old idea and modernize it to create thousands of jobs and generate power for the next hundred years.
“Where the wind comes sweeping down the plains” – when writing that famous line in the song Oklahoma!, who knew that Rodgers and Hammerstein were talking about wind energy? Truth be known, at the time they wrote the song neither had even been to Oklahoma. However, their characterization was very accurate and still is today. Oklahoma has now found a way to harness the wind as it sweeps down the plains and turn it into usable, clean energy in the form of electricity.
Wind energy is an excellent source of clean, renewable energy but it is not a sustainable energy and cannot be stored (YET). The downfall is that if the wind doesn’t blow then there is no energy produced. That is why wind energy is best used as an integrated form of energy working with our current plants. In fact, wind’s perfect partner is Oklahoma’s own abundant, clean-burning blessing: natural gas. You cannot add wind power to a utility’s portfolio without enough natural gas generation to back it up. Those Oklahoma resources have tremendous opportunity for our state and our country.
The next time the wind is sweeping down Oklahoma’s plains, remember that somewhere in Oklahoma, clean power is being generated for our safer, cleaner energy future. It is far easier to endure those windy Oklahoma days knowing that emerging wind power is bringing added value to Oklahoma’s vital energy economy.
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Jim Roth, a former Oklahoma Corporation Commissioner, is an attorney with Phillips Murrah P.C. in Oklahoma City, where his practice focuses on clean, green energy for Oklahoma. (Edited with the author’s permission by Nathaniel Batchelder.)