Facts about LIPA’s Wind Program

  • In May 2002, a Bergey 10 kW wind turbine was installed on the campus of the State of New York University at Stony Brook (formerly LIU Southampton College). It was the first modern wind turbine to be installed on Long Island.
  • The first LIPA & Long Island Farm Bureau wind turbine was installed that same year at the Zeh Farm on Route 25 in Calverton.
  • The Town of Brookhaven dedicated a 10 kW Bergey wind turbine at the Town Hall facility in Farmingville in May 2003.
  • In 2005, LIPA dedicated two wind turbines at the decommissioned Shoreham nuclear power plant.

Interesting Facts about Wind Energy

  • For centuries, the wind has been harnessed to power everything from ships to flour mills and water pumps. The earliest known windmills (which looked like large paddle wheels) were located in Persia.
  • Almost 7,000 Americans purchased residential wind systems in 2006 according to the American Wind Energy Association, and that number is still growing.
  • Approximately 2,500 grid-connected, residential scale turbines (1 to 10 kW are currently being used in the United States).
  • A large scale one (1) megawatt wind turbine can provide enough electricity for about 300 homes.
  • In 2008, US wind energy capacity exceeded 20,000 MW, producing enough electricity to power 5.3 million American homes.
  • The US Wind Industry installed more new wind energy capacity in the last two years than it achieved in the last two decades.
  • Global installed wind power capacity topped 100,000 megawatts in 2008, and shattered previous yearly records with 20,000 megawatts of new capacity added in 2007.
  • 100,000 MW of global wind power is enough to meet the electricity needs of approximately 150 million people.

Wind Energy Links and Resources
 

Backyard Wind Initiative

Questions?
Call the Energy Efficiency Infoline at 1-800-692-2626.