Share this on social media
These small- and medium-sized states punch above their weight in renewable energy generation
(Inside Climate News, 16 Mar 2023) While Texas and California lead the country in wind and solar, several others leap ahead once we take into account each state’s land area.
It’s not surprising that gigantic states like Texas and California are heavy hitters in generating some of the most electricity from wind and solar.
But what if we look at generation per square mile of land?
Then, the leader is Iowa.
Iowa generated 806.7 megawatt-hours per square mile in 2022 from wind and solar, most of which was from wind, based on data from the Energy Information Administration.
Rhode Island was next with 626.7 megawatt-hours per square mile, most of which was from solar.
Disclosure: I’m an Iowa native and will jump at any opportunity to talk about the virtues of the state. One of my first reporting jobs was covering Iowa politics in the early 2000s.
Inside Climate News, 16 Mar 2023: These small- and medium-sized states punch above their weight in renewable energy generation
