Boosting Renewable Energy to 25% of Electricity Supply in Western U.S. Would Cut Pollution, Save Consumers Billions

American Wind Energy Association, by Michael Goggin, September 24, 2013

According to a comprehensive new analysis by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, obtaining 25 percent of electricity in the western U.S. from renewable energy will reduce carbon dioxide pollution by up to 34 percent and save $7 billion annually in fossil fuel costs. The report also puts to rest the fossil fuel industry myth that wind energy’s pollution savings are smaller than expected because fossil-fired power plants run at lower efficiency when wind is generating electricity. It found that one megawatt-hour of wind energy, the amount produced by a typical wind turbine approximately every 90 minutes, saves 1190 pounds of carbon dioxide pollution on average. The negative impact on the efficiency of fossil-fired power plants reduced those carbon dioxide savings by only 2.4 pounds.

http://aweablog.org/blog/post/boosting-renewable-energy-to-25-of-electricity-supply-in-western-us-would-cut-pollution-save-consumers-billions