NEW NATIONAL COALITION FORMED TO PROMOTE CLEAN, RENEWABLE, DOMESTIC WIND ENERGY DEVELOPMENT
July 6, 2005 - Washington, D.C.
The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) today announced the formation of a broad national coalition of wind energy advocates that is intended to be the largest pro-wind energy development organization of its kind in the United States. Wind Energy Works! will actively and aggressively engage in the public conversation over the merits of wind energy, educate the public about the many benefits of wind energy development, and act as a counterbalance to the misinformation being spread by wind energy opponents in communities across the country.
There is great support in this country for wind energy development. A May
2005 Yale University poll found that 87 percent of Americans support expanded
wind farms and 86 percent want increased funding for renewable energy research.
Despite such widespread support, opponents have mounted a concerted effort to
distort the truth about wind energy's benefits and spread misinformation to the
public in an attempt to influence their favorable perception of wind energy. The
Wind Energy Works! coalition was created to counter myths with facts.
The initial organizations in the coalition include a diverse array of
national, regional and local environmental, agricultural, economic development,
faith-based and wind and renewable energy advocacy groups.
Members include: Earth Policy Institute, the Chesapeake Climate Action
Network, the Izaak Walton League of America, Union of Concerned Scientists, the
American Corn Growers Association, the American Corn Growers Foundation, Prowers
County Development, Inc., and The Regeneration Project/Interfaith Power and
Light. Wind and renewable energy advocacy organization members include: AWEA,
Renewable Energy Long Island, Western Resource Advocates, the Renewable
Northwest Project, Wind Power New York, Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future, the
Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies (CEERT), The Wind
Coalition, Green Energy Ohio, Wind on the Wires, the Interwest Energy Alliance,
Clean Energy Partnership, Renew Wisconsin, West Wind Wires, Minnesotans for an
Energy-Efficient Economy (ME3), and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. This
initial group will be supplemented over time by an even broader set of national,
regional, state and local organizations.
Although the establishment of the coalition was spurred by AWEA, the
coalition's vision is to become a broad-based alliance of independent voices
providing a platform for organizations from the environmental, agricultural,
business, health, social justice, faith, and academic communities to promote
their combined expertise and perspective on the need for continued wind energy
development. This effort will reach every corner of the country and every level
of the wind energy conversation - from local town hall meetings to state media
coverage to the floor of the U.S. Senate, the coalition's presence will be felt
and its perspective will be voiced. "By combining the resources of its
members and creating a unified message and communication infrastructure, the
coalition will engage in every aspect of the wind energy conversation across
this country and let no myth or falsehood about wind go unanswered without the
facts about wind energy's tremendous benefits," said Coalition Steering
Committee Member Susan Sloan of The Wind Coalition (Austin, Texas). "The
strength and effectiveness of this coalition will be greater than the sum of its
parts."
Wind Energy Works! is intended to be a simple, effective, memorable statement
of the value and benefit of wind energy development. Wind energy works! because
it's effective: it creates jobs, generates local tax revenues and supports local
economies. Wind energy works! because it is a reality today: wind energy is a
viable energy source creating electric power for more then 1 million Americans.
Wind energy works! because it is a clean, renewable, domestic source of energy
that can be expanded across the country: wind energy could provide at least six
percent of the nation's electricity by 2020. "Wind energy is an invaluable
economic asset to the overall agricultural industry and specifically to the
farming sector by diversifying the income of farmers, ranchers and other
landowners as well as generating tax revenue for local governments," said
Coalition Steering Committee Member Dan McGuire, American Corn Growers
Foundation CEO. "Rural communities across the country need to have their
voices heard on the need for development of this critical power source and the
Wind Energy Works! coalition will allow us to join with wind energy advocates
from all over the nation to do just that." "Wind energy is one of the
cleanest energy sources available - protecting air quality and reducing global
warming pollution, while also conserving our natural resources," said
Coalition Steering Committee Member Alan Nogee, clean energy program director at
the Union of Concerned Scientists. "The Wind Energy Works! coalition will
help ensure that the public is informed that wind energy is available to provide
these benefits today."
About Wind Energy Works!
Wind Energy Works! is a new national alliance that will support wind energy
development across the country. The coalition will engage the public debate over
wind energy development with facts about its many benefits and counteract the
growing spread of misinformation by wind energy opponents. Although initiated by
the wind energy industry, its broad-based membership includes organizations and
individuals representing many walks of life.
About the American Wind Energy Association
AWEA, formed in 1974, is the national trade association of the U.S. wind
energy industry. The association's membership includes turbine manufacturers,
wind project developers, utilities, academicians, and interested individuals.
More information on wind energy is available on the AWEA web site: www.awea.org
( http://www.awea.org/ )