this post was submitted on 10 Apr 2024
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Texas invested heavily in wind back in the day before Republicans went off the deep end. Rick Perry as governor lead an effort to use eminent domain to take land and build high voltage transmission lines between West Texas where the wind blows and Central/East Texas where the people live. Then wind companies started approaching land owners with contracts for guaranteed income and projects started going up all over the place.
Now almost a quarter of Texas's energy production is wind, and Texas produces over a quarter of the entire US's total wind energy output, in spite of the state political environment. Solar power is following the same trajectory, even though the current government has been trying to favor natural gas.
At 6pm today, per ERCOT almost 60% of Texas's total generation is from wind and solar, and another 8% from nuclear. It's like this pretty much every day, and solar's going to keep rising rapidly
The big question is why are seemingly environmental states so far behind.
My 2 cents based on what I've learned is Texas has a low barrier to entry in the energy market, so it's relatively easy for someone to set up a business, build a project, and connect it to the grid vs other states. What also helps is there's tons of land that isn't suitable for agriculture or intensive ranching, and in West Texas that land isn't being used for much else besides low-intensity ranching or hunting leases. Also many West Texas landowners have existing oil and gas leases dating back decades (many of them are producing little to no revenue today, besides the areas where fracking is occurring) so they're used to negotiating leases with energy companies. Someone coming to you with a contract for $3000/mo in perpetuity for the use of a few acres of your 500 acre property that you're otherwise doing nothing with can be pretty attractive.
Iowa is mumber two for wind despite some of the most valuable farmland in the world.
again I ask: what are other states doing wrong that they are so far behind. Please do some soul searchering as whatever it is, it failed you baddly.
Wow dude, take a chill pill 🤣
I'm going to do some soul searchering now, byye
Is that natural gas acquired from fracking?
That's natural gas acquired from all sources