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In Northwest Missouri, when you drive down Highway 136 you would expect to see corn, soybeans, cattle, picturesque farm houses and a lot of hills. However, these days something else is being harvested along this corridor. The wind.
Giant wind turbines have popped up all along the highway. The American Wind Energy Association lists Missouri as one of the top 20 states with wind energy potential. It’s no secret that this part of Northwest Missouri has some of the highest elevations in the state. It’s a natural spot for wind energy.
This is another example of using the resources we have to make America less dependent on foreign sources of energy. In 2005 and 2006, Congress extended the Production Tax Credit of 2 cents per Kilowatt-hour of electricity.
This credit has helped get wind energy off the ground. It expires in December of 2008 and I believe that we should extend it in order to encourage more wind power. I am a co-sponsor of H.R. 197 which extends the tax credit for another five years.
According to AWEA wind energy is expected to account for six percent of our energy by 2020. Wind energy also has the ability to create jobs in our rural communities without consuming natural resources or emitting pollution. The United States is the leading producer of small wind turbines, the vast majority of which are manufactured on U.S. soil.
Promoting renewable fuels like wind, ethanol and bio-diesel will be key in weaning our country off of foreign sources of energy.
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