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Factsheets and Statistics
Wind Energy by the Numbers
Wind energy produced worldwide: 65,000,000,000 kWh per year (enough power for 6 million U.S. homes)
Wind energy produced in the U.S.: 16,000,000,000 kWh per year (enough power for 1.6 million homes)
Potential U.S. wind energy production by 2020: enough power for 25 million homes yearly
Installed cost of wind energy: 2-6 cents/kWh
Yearly emissions eliminated by generating energy from a 1 MW wind turbine instead of 1 MW of conventional sources: over 1,500 tons of carbon dioxide, 6.5 tons of sulfur dioxide, 3.2 tons of nitrogen oxides, and 60 pounds of mercury in one year.
Wind power farms generate between 17 and 39 times as much power as they consume, as compared to 16 times for nuclear plants and 11 times for coal plants, according to a study of Midwestern wind farms by the University of Wisconsin.
Source: American Wind Energy Association
Warren Gretz / DOE/NREL
Downloadable Factsheets
Wind Energy for Electric Power (Renewable Energy Policy Project): A comprehensive overview of wind power science, the current state of wind development, and the positive effects of wind energy.
Economic Impact of Renewable Energy in Pennsylvania (Black and Veatch): Analyzes the Advanced Energy Portfolio Standard (AEPS) in the State of Pennsylvania, showing how the adoption of the AEPS would not only lower electricity costs in the state, but also provide significant other economic benefits to the state.
Benefits of Wind (U.S. Department of Energy): A look at the national and local advantages of wind power. Also see our Benefits of Wind and Benefits to PA pages.
Wind Energy Myths (U.S. Department of Energy): Addresses some common misconceptions about wind energy.
Wind Energy Facts and Myths (American Wind Energy Association): Provides the answers to aesthetic, economic, and environmental concerns regarding wind power.
