With New England waves, scenery, and lobster comes plenty of wind, and Maine is one state benefitting from more wind power investment.  As former governor Angus King pointed out, a state lacking reliable energy sources needs to find other sources of fuel, and to that end, the US Department of Energy has announced a US$102 million loan guarantee to Record Hill Wind LLC.  The company’s 50.6 megawatt wind farm will be near Roxbury, Maine.

According to Stephanie Spanarkel of AOL Energy:

As of June 2011 the US wind industry was generating 42,432 MW of wind capacity, according to the American Wind Energy Association. The Record Hill wind project, currently under construction, will contribute 50.6 MW to the grid, bringing the country a step closer to its target of 20% wind generation by 2030.

Wind energy always has its critics (Fox News, of all sources, is hyping the death of wildlife due to wind farms), and sometimes these companies adopt obnoxious tactics many of us assume are relegated to oil companies.  But wind and other clean energy technologies will be a complement, not a replacement, for fossil fuels--and with the next fuel price spike not a question of if, but when, more projects are a necessity, not an indulgence.

Photo is of Ogunquit, Maine.

About The Author

Leon Kaye

Leon Kaye is the founder and editor of GreenGoPost.com and its advisory division, GGP Media. Contact him to discuss how he can work with your organization or event. His focus is making the business case for sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR). He writes for San Francisco-based Triple Pundit, Inhabitat and now The Guardian, for which he writes about corporate responsibility, water, and green building. He has also written for AIA's Architect Magazine. Leon works out of Fresno and Silicon Valley, California, and when he has free time, he enjoys hiking, gardening, cooking, weightlifting, and planning his next trip to one of the 60 countries he has visited. He has an MBA from USC's Marshall School of Business and is also a proud graduate of the University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) and Cal State-Fresno.