North Dakota Wind Energy Resources
You can help bring wind energy to North Dakota and your community!
North Dakota has an amazing wind resource. In fact, North Dakota has the potential to produce more than 1.2 trillion kWh of electricity every year--that's enough to power more than a quarter of the entire country!
Beyond the environmental benefits of wind energy, wind energy presents an enormous economic opportunity for states that act quickly. It's been estimated that wind energy can create thousands of jobs and hundred of millions of dollars in economic growth for North Dakota, and community wind can increase these benefits by more than three times.
Unfortunately, development of wind energy in North Dakota has not yet lived up to this potential. As of early 2008, North Dakota had about 345 MW of installed wind energy capacity--13th in the nation. As a point of comparison, Texas (the number 1 state) had 4356 MW of installed capacity.
You can help
The states that have seen the most success in wind energy have one thing in common: support from the citizens of the state. To be a part of North Dakota's wind energy future, you can do two main things:
Number 1: Educate yourself! Learn about wind energy and your options for participation.
Number 2: Speak up! Tell your elected officials (local, state and national) that you support wind energy and community wind energy and want North Dakota to be a wind energy leader.
This web page will help you with both of these activities.
Educate yourself
Learn about wind energy:
- Windustry's Wind Basics Series
- The Benefits of Wind and Community Wind Energy
- Windustry's Community Wind Energy Resource Library
- The American Wind Energy Association Web Site
- Wind Powering America (a program of the U.S. Dept. of Energy)
- The Wind Farmers Network online forum
Learn about wind energy in North Dakota:
- A wind map of North Dakota
- Existing and Planned Wind Energy Projects in North Dakota
- North Dakota Wind Energy Activities (from Wind Powering America)
- Incentives for Renewable Energy in North Dakota
Learn about community wind energy:
Other organizations doing work with wind energy in North Dakota:
- 2XtM (To Cross the Moon)
- Dakota Resource Council
- The Energy and Environment Center at the University of North Dakota
- Plains Organization for Wind Energy Resources
- The Sacred Heart Monestary in Richardton, ND
- The North Dakota Department of Commerce
- North Dakota Climate
- Prairie Climate Stewardship Network
Speak up
The most important thing you can do to encourage wind energy in North Dakota is to let your elected officials know that you support wind energy and ask them what they are doing to support community wind energy. You don't have to be an expert to ask!
We've put together a sample letter to help you along. Click here for the Word version or here for a pdf version.
In North Dakota, it is most important to contact your governor and state legislators.
Don't forget that 2008 is an election year--ask your candidates what they are doing to support community wind energy.
Here is information about your elected officials:
North Dakota Governor John Hoeven
Find Your State Legislators
- View a listing of North Dakota state legislators here
- Use this link to locate your state legislative district
North Dakota's U.S. Senators
- Kent Conrad
- Byron Dorgan
Find Your U.S. Representative
- Use the ZIP code search box on the U.S. House of Representatives web site
Find Your Local Elected Officials
Find Information about North Dakota Tribal Governments here.
Ready to take the next step? Organize a bus with your neighbors and go to Bismarck to ask the Governor and your state legislators in person: "What are you doing to support community wind energy?"
Click here to download a copy of our North Dakota promotional post card.