Illinois WInd Energy Update

The Center for Renewable Energy at Illinois State University has predicted that Illinois could become the fourth largest state in wind energy production this year. Researchers say current projections show Texas, Iowa, California, Minnesota and Illinois at the top of the list for wind energy in the U.S, with Illinois projected to have a total of 2,435.4 megawatts of wind energy installed by the end of the third quarter of 2011.

The difference in installed capacity between Illinois and Minnesota by the third quarter is projected to be 58.6 megawatts, and Illinois resaerchers say delays in Minnesota’s upcoming wind farm developments could result in Illinois moving up to the number four spot in wind energy production. The state currently produces between four and five percent of its total energy output with wind and is ranked number severn nationally in total wind energy production. Read more...

Using Marginal Land for Biofuels Production

Researchers have published the results of a study aimed at identifying the amount of marginal land available worldwide for biofuel crop production. The goal of the study, conducted at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, was to determine the types and locations of land that are suitable for growing biofuel feedstocks and to identify the current land cover at those sites. The researchers concluded that biofuel produced from crops grown on abandoned or degraded cropland could supply up to 52 percent of the world's liquid fuel consumption. Read more...