Could your Community Use an Economic and Energy Boom?
Last week the Obama Administration released its Clean Energy Plan, which seeks to reduce by one-third the amount of emissions released from electricity production. Many communities have already made the commitment to develop cleaner energy solutions, including the small southern town of Elizabeth City, North Carolina. This unlikely community is the site for the first commercial-scale wind farm in the state, and proves that when climate leaders take on a new challenge, progress can be accomplished.
Developing the wind farm is expected to bring multiple benefits to the region. The farm will require 250 workers for its construction and 10 full time employees for the operation. It will include upgrades to city infrastructure, provide large payments for land-leases to residents, and spark an economic boom for city and county coffers, generating significant tax revenue.
The development of the wind farm was made possible through the collaboration of municipal leaders at multiple levels of government. Their actions are responsible for bringing business investments, jobs and an improved quality of life for the residents of their communities. The combination of economic and climate-solutions makes the development of wind energy infrastructure an easy choice for community leaders across the country. If you are in a community that could benefit from such environmental and economic progress, be sure to visit Path to Positive Communities and learn how to get started!
Officials Tout Amazon Wind Farm Deal
By Catherine Kozak | Coastal Review Online | 8-5-2015
ELIZABETH CITY — In a remarkable convergence of happenstance and politics, this conservative Southern river town has become a prime example of the innovative energy technology that the Obama administration is now aggressively pursuing.
Three weeks before Obama’s announcement on Monday about stricter carbon standards for power plants, the Amazon Wind Farm U.S. East, the first commercial-scale wind farm in the state, broke ground on 22,000 acres of farmland near Elizabeth City and Hertford, in Pasquotank and Perquimans counties, respectively.
“I think that this is a just another piece of evidence that shows that clean energy policy is working for North Carolina,” said Maggie Clark, government affairs associate for the N.C. Sustainable Energy Association. “It really does go back to being an economic development success story.”