What do Maine, Iowa, and S Dakota have in common? All three produce 15% or more of their state's power from clean, non-hydroelectric sources, according to the Washington Post. Way to go. Hopefully this will inspire other states.
It's also a good reason for all of us to support federal subsidies of clean energy.
"A good portion of the recent boom in wind and solar power has been thanks to the federal production tax credit and assorted grants in the stimulus bill. Those grants have now expired and the tax credit for wind will expire at the end of 2012," says the Post.
Clean energy may falter "mainly because federal funding is about to drop off a cliff and the Republican wrecking crew in the House remains generally hostile to programs that threaten the hegemony of the oil and gas interests," according to the New York Times.
A diplomatic way to say that many Republicans have been bought by the fossil fuel industry.
These are the battle lines. Just like the fossil fuel industry received subsidies to establish itself many years ago, the clean energy industry deserves a chance. It's beyond that really: We hardly have a choice.
The Post story comes with a great Energy Information Administration map -- check it out.
Note: The top three states for total renewable generation, not simply as a percentage of their mix, are Texas, California, and Iowa. All good, but notice how Iowa appears high on both lists.
Image credit: cuttingedgenews.com
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