Featured in this issue:

• Community Wind Grows Steadily in 2009
• Do Tax Incentives Benefit Community Wind?
• Does "Buy America" Apply to Wind Farm Incentives?
• Small Wind Conference
• Windustry Conference
• Windspiration
• On the Windustry Trail

Washington, D.C., January 26, 2010 - The U.S. wind energy industry broke all previous records by installing nearly 10,000 megawatts (MW) of new generating capacity in 2009 (enough to serve over 2.4 million homes) according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) in its “Year End 2009 Market Report.”

Washington, DC, January 21, 2010 - U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced today the selection of five projects to receive more than $20.5 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to support deployment of community-based renewable energy projects, such as biomass, wind and solar installations. These projects will promote investment in clean energy infrastructure that will create jobs, help communities provide long-term renewable energy and save consumers money.

The Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs) project has awarded CERTs seed grants of up to $11,000 to help projects garner further funding and bring communities together in identifying and implementing energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. CERTs received 122 proposals, of which 55 proposals were funded for a total granting amount of $280,000.

A new report from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory reveals how the 30% investment tax credit (ITC) and cash grant equivalent have increased benefits for the development of Community Wind projects. “Revealing the Hidden Value that the Federal Investment Tax Credit and Treasury Cash Grant Provide To Community Wind Projects” analyzes the impact of new federal policies for wind farm investment incentives introduced this year as part of the U.S. economic stimulus program.

Proposals are being accepted by the Inland Empire Utilities Agency Headquarters, a Municipal Water District, for a Power Purchase Agreement required for the design, installation, operation and maintenance of a Wind Turbine Power System at Regional Plant #4 (RP-4). A design-build option is also being solicited in Section 2.b.ii.

The energy sector is transforming from a “big” business structure driven by non-renewable environmental extraction to a sector built on accessible abundant and renewable energy to households and business of all sizes, according to a series of briefing papers by the Center for Social Inclusion.

A new study answers a long-nagging question of whether property values will decline due to nearby wind energy development. The answer is no, according to a report released by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy: "The Impact of Wind Power Projects on Residential Property Values in the United States: A Multi-Site Hedonic Analysis."