Apr. 12--Washington has leapfrogged into fifth place among the country's most wind-powered states thanks to two wind farms that came online in 2006, according to an industry organization.

The American Wind Energy Association in Washington, D.C., moved Washington ahead of Oklahoma in its assessment of wind-power capacity after Washington added several hundred new megawatts of energy from the Big Horn and Wild Horse facilities. "These wind-power rankings tell the story of a vibrant industry that is growing fast, competing hard, gaining market share and all the while powering a cleaner, stronger America," said Randall Swisher, the association's executive director. Texas leads the nation with more than 2,700 megawatts of wind power. It is followed by California, Iowa and Minnesota.

Washington wind farms produce about 818 megawatts, equivalent to almost half of the power used by Seattle. So what's driving the state's rise in the world of wind power? For one thing, hydroelectric dams make it easier to incorporate wind in the state's power portfolio because the hydro energy can be used to stabilize the unpredictability of wind. But Ann Gravatt, policy director for Renewable Northwest Project, said Washington voters and legislators also have shown the industry the state has the willingness to incorporate wind power into its systems. "We will continue to see a steady increase of wind in Washington because of the policies," Gravatt said.

"Utilities are recognizing these policies, and also customers want it." Washington voters approved a ballot initiative requiring large utilities to obtain at least 15 percent of their supplies from renewable resources by 2020. Similar measures are spreading around the Northwest. In Oregon, where wind contributes about 1 percent of the total power, the Senate this week passed a measure requiring utilities to generate at least 20 percent of their power from renewable resources y 2025. The measures still has to pass the Oregon House. Tom Karier, a Washington member of the Northwest Power and Conservation Council and co-chairman of the 21-member study committee, said the rising industry interest in wind hasn't taken Washington by surprise, particularly east of the Cascades.

The council, which along with BPA commissioned the recently released Northwest Wind Integration Action Plan, believes the Northwest can successfully integrate 6,000 megawatts of wind power by 2024 -- enough electricity to power three cities the size of eattle. According to the wind study, the challenge will be extending the Northwest's power transmission system to connect wind farms with customers. Even in the future, though, wind's unpredictability will limit its potential and makes it unlikely it ever will e the primary energy source for a power system that counts on reliability, the group found.

Still, that hasn't stopped industry leaders from investing in wind power. According to the American Wind Energy Association, the industry invested about $4 billion in new power generation facilities in 2006, creating more than 2,400 new megawatts. Similarly, across the Northwest seven new wind farms were completed between October 2005 and October 2006, generating 954 megawatts of new wind power capacity. The addition of the 140-megawatt Marengo wind farm near Dayton will bring Washington close to breaking the 1,000 megawatt threshold. Currently, only Texas and California produce more. The Marengo facility is expected to be brought online by August and should serve about 37,000 Pacific Power customers.