The United States Department of Energy has released a set of maps on its Wind Powering America website illustrating the growth of wind energy across the United States.

According to the Dept. of Energy, which relies on data from the American Wind Energy Association, Wisconsin’s wind production has increased from 23 to 631 megawatts (MW) over the past thirteen years.

The Energy Department recently released a renewable energy resource assessment detailing the potential to develop electric power generation at existing dams across the United States that aren't currently equipped to produce power. The report estimates that without building a single new dam, these available hydropower resources, if fully developed, could provide an electrical generating capacity of more than 12 gigawatts (GW).

An agreement signed by 10 federal agencies and the governors of Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, and Pennsylvania, is designed to speed review of proposed offshore wind projects in the Great Lakes by increasing collaboration between federal and state agencies.

The EPA announced it has taken a step toward wide distribution of gasoline mixed with 15 percent ethanol by allowing manufacturers to register as suppliers. Twenty ethanol makers have registered to sell E15, including Ace Ethanol LLC in Stanley, WI.

Federal agencies have been targeted by the Obama administration for emissions and consumption reductions. Not only will agencies consume less fuel, but all of the greenhouse gas emissions from fuel consumption and other activities must be reported.

On March 7th, the Senate referred back to committee a bill that would have directed the Wisconsin Public Service Commission to craft new windmill siting standards. Although a bill could still come to the floor, if it does not pass both houses by the last day of the legislative session, March 15th, the PSC’s 2010 windmill siting rules will go into effect.

Every year, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) prepares an Annual Energy Outlook which forecasts energy consumption and demand into the future. An “early release” of the 2012 edition of the Annual Energy Outlook projects natural gas will play an increasingly important role.

Midwest Energy News recently published an interesting article discussing how different states treat hydroelectric power when it comes to renewable electricity standards. As the article explains, although hydropower is a renewable energy, it does not always count toward a state’s renewable electricity standard.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) on December 29, 2011, taking the first step toward establishing a competitive process for leasing public lands for solar and wind energy development. The ANPR asks for public comments to assist the BLM as it drafts a proposed rule that is meant to foster the growth of renewable energy by establishing an efficient competitive process for issuing right-of-way (ROW) leases for solar and wind energy development.

You know that Nissan Leaf commercial where everything runs on gas? Every time I see it I wonder how much gas it would take to do certain things. Apparently Nissan and I are not the only people thinking about these things, as Exxon Mobile recently did the math, and figured out how many gallons of gas would it take to charge an iPhone.

The EPA finalized the 2012 percentage standards for four fuel categories that are part of the agency’s Renewable Fuel Standard program (RFS2) just in time for the new year.

The final 2012 overall volumes and standards are:

Biomass-based diesel: 1.0 billion gallons; 0.91 percent
Advanced biofuels: 2.0 billion gallons; 1.21 percent
Cellulosic biofuels: 8.65 million gallons; 0.006 percent
Total renewable fuels: 15.2 billion gallons; 9.23 percent

The Environmental Protection Agency will develop and finalize multiple rules over the next several years that will dramatically impact the air, water, and energy regulatory climate. This unprecedented level of activity will be mirrored at the state level since each federal regulation will trigger the promulgation of state rules to implement the standards. Studies have shown these rules will have an impact on the overall economy, jobs, competitiveness, and energy costs.

Below is a brief summary of of the most recent action on the multitude of rules under promulgation as well as information on expected future actions.

Wisconsin Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner is leading a two front attack on the EPA’s registration of E15 fuel. Sensenbrenner has introduced legislation requiring more studies and higher standards and has also asked the EPA to delay any action on E15.

A congressionally-requested report from the National Research Council found that the United States is unlikely to be able to meet its Renewable Fuel Standard.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued its final report identifying a number of regulations that it will target for modification or elimination in response to Executive Order 13563. The EPA’s report discusses 35 planned regulatory reviews in five main environmental areas.

The old saying that politics makes strange bedfellows is spot on when it comes to describing a recent report titled Green Scissors 2011. The report, which is to be delivered to the super committee created by the bi-partisan compromise over raising the federal debt ceiling, was co-authored by the Friends of the Earth, the Heartland Institute, Public Citizen, and Taxpayers for Common Sense.

Beginning on January 2, 2011, the EPA required large plants and factories planning to make major modifications or build new facilities to obtain pre-construction permits addressing their GHG emissions. These facilities, such as oil refineries and power plants, must obtain air permits and carry out energy efficiency measures or use cost-effective technology to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

Recently, however, the EPA has taken a significant step away from regulation by proposing to defer, for three years, Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) and Title V permitting requirements for carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from bioenergy and other biogenic stationary sources.

This morning the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules voted to suspend the Public Service Commission’s (PSC) wind siting rules. The PSC rule, finalized in December, would have taken effect today if the vote had failed. The next step is for the Committee to draft a bill supporting the suspension.

The PSC rules called for wind turbines to be set back at least 1,250 feet from nearby homes, and included specific limits on decibel levels for wind turbines as well as shadow flicker.

ANew York Times article discusses a new study that finds that a proposed plan by the EPA to allow an increase in the amount of ethanol mixed into gasoline from 10 percent to 15 percent would damage cars and increase pollution.

According to the article:

• Half of the engines tested so far have had some problems, said C. Coleman Jones, the biofuel implementation manager at General Motors, who spoke on behalf of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
• More ethanol will confuse exhaust control systems and make engines run too hot, destroying catalytic converters, automakers say. It can also damage engine cylinders, they say.

The article also notes that higher ethanol content will likely produce more nitrogen oxides, an ingredient of smog.

The Wisconsin Policy Research Institute (WPRI) this week issued a study titled, "The Economics of Climate Change Proposals in Wisconsin," which analyzes the costs associated with complying with the various policy recommendations contained in Wisconsin's Governor's Task Force on Global Warming Final Report.