Realizing Ohio’s Energy
Future! Read more from Environment Ohio on the variety of ways
Ohio can harness energy from homegrown resources such as
wind.
 NREL’s
latest Wind Energy Potential in Ohio!
Click here to read Environment Ohio's full report on how diversifying Ohio's electricity supply with 20 percent wind energy by 2020 could create 3,100 full-time jobs and add $3.7billion in net wages for Ohio workers.
The
potential for positive economic impacts in Ohio as a result of
wind energy production is manifold. See below for overviews of
such benefits.
- Local Tax
Revenue
This new source of tax revenue can benefit
rural school systems, and local economies. Ohio’s farming
communities are sitting on a plentiful natural resource that is
waiting to be tapped. Developing wind energy in rural Ohio will
revitalize our farming communities with a new source of revenue
for landowners and rural economies.
For sources and more
information, see Ohio’s Wind Energy
Future
- Manufacturing Job
Potential
Wind energy is an economic winner that will
generate jobs, renew communities, and secure Ohio’s economy. Money
that Ohio usually spends on out-of-state energy resources will be
invested on homegrown materials and labor, instead. An increased
demand for wind turbines will boost Ohio’s manufacturing base and
create new businesses and jobs of all skill levels in various job
sectors. Ohio will benefit from new manufacturing, construction,
installation, maintenance, education, and research and development
jobs from an investment in wind energy. Ohio has the
infrastructure to be a leading manufacturer of wind energy
technologies. With a national investment in renewable energy and
energy efficiency, Ohio could potentially gain more than 22,000
manufacturing jobs. Over 13,000 of these manufacturing jobs would
result from an investment in wind power, which is more of a job
gain than any other state besides California.47 The installation
and maintenance of wind turbines is a homegrown industry, one that
can provide more and better jobs than coal-fired power plants.48
Over 1,000 companies, located throughout the state, would benefit
from increased wind energy production
For sources and more
information, see Ohio’s Wind Energy
Future
- Investment
Potential
For sources and more
information, see Ohio’s Wind Energy Future
- Import Energy vs. Homegrown
Energy
As a major energy importer, Ohio has felt the
burden of the high cost of energy. In 2001, Ohio spent over $29
billion on energy resources and $16 billion of those dollars were
exported to other states or nations. A homegrown clean energy
strategy would reduce Ohio’s exposure to price spikes, supply
disruptions, and other repercussions of our reliance on fossil
fuels. The property tax revenues from installing wind turbines
have provided a new source of income for struggling rural
communities across the United States.
For sources and more
information, see Ohio’s Wind Energy
Future
- Energy
Diversification
Our current
energy sources contaminate our air and water, and contribute to
increased asthma rates, birth defects, and lung cancer. Pollution
from coal-fired power plants ranges from soot and carbon dioxide
to mercury toxins. Drilling for oil and gas resources carries the
risk of oil spills and gas leaks; and there still is no solution
highly radioactive waste from nuclear power plants. Investing in
wind energy will relieve the burden on the health of Ohioans and
our environment that is caused by these energy sources. Increased
wind energy will also help reduce Ohio’s global warming pollution
from our coal-fired power plants. Carbon dioxide is the main
contributor to global warming, and coal combustion is responsible
for about 39 percent of America’s emissions of carbon dioxide.
Unfortunately, Ohio’s coal-fired power plants are contributing to
an increase in carbon emissions nationwide.68 (See Fig. 9) the
vast majority of coal consumed in the United States is for
electricity generation. In Ohio, coal generates over 87 percent of
our electricity, and energy companies have plans to develop even
more. Seven new coal fired power plants are on the drawing board
for Ohio, which would potentially increase Ohio’s global warming
pollution by 21 percent.
For sources and more information,
see Ohio’s
Wind Energy Future
|
