With all the of the sustainable energy naysayers out there, you’d be forgiven for believing that renewable power will never take off in this bleak economic climate. But you’d be wrong.
According to SustainableBusiness.com, the United States added 433 megawatts of new electricity generation in September, and all of it came from renewable energy sources.
The new capacity comes from five wind projects and 11 solar projects that came online last month. To date, renewables account for nearly half (43.8 percent) of all capacity that has come online this year.
According to the article:
That’s a 29% increase from the first nine months of 2011. Renewable energy sources now account for 14.9% (including hydro) of all installed U.S. electrical generating capacity. Excluding hydro, renewables now supply over 5% of US electricity.
Meanwhile, coal is on the outs. Only one coal-fired generator came online in the first half of 2012, and no new coal plants are planned in the US. The ones that are in the pre-construction phase may never be built. Sounds good to us.
(via Grist)
Photo: Biglow Canyon wind farm in Sherman County, OR has a total capacity of nearly 325 MW, or enough to meet the electricity needs of about 100,000 US homes. (Siemens AG)