Per an article in Power Technology in April, 2019 by Jack Unwin called “Top ten US states by wind energy capacity:”
“Donald Trump’s well-known hostility towards wind power and what he believes is its cancer-causing abilities wind energy is a well-established source of power in the US.
In fact, the US is the second largest producer of wind energy in the world with an installed capacity of over 96GW, and it has six of the world’s top ten onshore windfarms. But progress still needs to be made as a number of states in the southeast from Arkansas to Florida don’t have any wind turbines installed at all.”
Using updated statistics at the end of 2019, the top five states for wind energy are:
Texas (28,843 MW)*
Iowa (10,201 MW)
Oklahoma (8,172 MW)
Kansas (6,128 MW)
California (5,973 MW)
It should be noted, since they are smaller states, the top three by percentage of electricity generated by wind energy are: Iowa (41.7%) Kansas (36.4%) Oklahoma (31.7%). Saying it differently, more than 1/3 of the electricity produced in these three states combined come from wind energy.
The upside remains huge, especially referencing the two states that have no wind mills. The cost of wind energy is compelling and it is does not have the environmental degradation and cost of coal or does not leak methane or use water to acquire like natural gas. And, this does not reflect the huge growth in solar energy that has occurred and will occur.
I take pride that we are moving forward in spite of the efforts of the US president to play up fossil fuel. I would listen to the counsel of deceased oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens, who said almost ten years ago, natural gas will buy us time, but the future of energy in the middle of the country is wind energy. It should be noted, Exxon Mobil was just removed from the Dow Jones as its capitalization has fallen.
Please remember Pickens’ words as he noted the wind blows across the plains states. And, the sun also shines across the country. More on that source later.
Note: Oil rich Texas has made a concerted effort to build wind energy. The following paragraph comes from wfaa.com’s website earlier this year.
“In Texas, the wind blows hardest in the West side of the state. But most people live in the central and eastern parts. So, Texas built 3,600 miles of electric transmission lines to carry power out of the most remote parts of the state. The legislature called it Competitive Renewable Energy Zones.Feb 16, 2020”
musingsofanoldfart 
Very good news indeed!
Thanks Hugh. Minnesota is in the top ten as well. It is amazing how secretive this news is in some circles.
Hello Keith. The mistake many people make is thinking that one energy source fits the entire nation. Regional areas have different energy potentials. Some can use geothermal, others can use wind, some are better for solar, some can use different kinds of hydropower including wave power tech. There is no shortage of energy sources in the country except people have been convinced that only fossil fuels were able to power the entire country. Think how much better the environment would be today if we had started to use regional energy sources rather than oil or coal country wide. Hugs
Scottie, well said. The Scots are beyond the pilot phase of tidal energy as the North Sea churns so much. It is not ironic the UK was peppered with water mills and the Nethelands have so many wind mills throughout their histories. What you articulate is not a new concept. Keith
PS – what scares fossil fuel and utility companies is renewable sources need not be major projects. A new housing development can be fully powered by solar energy with a little battery storage. Close to all IKEA and more than a few Walmart stores are fully powered by solar panels on their roofs.
Didn’t know it causes cancer. What I never understand is why we don’t conserve energy more. It would be easy to reduce electricity, gasoline, water consumption. California decreased water consumpion by 20% just by volunteer program. Gasoline tax ain’t a bad idea either, and why are they still building pipelines?
Bumba, all good questions, except for Dr. Trump’s diagnosis that wind turbines cause cancer. In Texas, a rancher can get an annual license fee of $5,000 per wind mill, so twelve windmills is $60K per annum and the cattle does not mind. Keith
As long as the cattle are all right with it.
Their response was brief, “moo.”
Whyever he is afraid of such things. But when he is, he will always have his own “fake news” at hands to wipe good things into a corner. Thank God, we all know that he is acting that way.
Erika, this will sound petty, but the president is known to keep vendetta lists. He lost a court case in the UK to prevent offshore wind mills from being built that were visible from his golf course. It may be as simple as this is his way of getting even. Who knows the rationale this person has, which is a point Bob Woodward gleaned from his inteviews with Trump. Keith
The only thing he wants is demonstrating his power. He doesn’t care what it he risks as long as he demonstrates his power!
Erika, and that is certainly a key part of it. The best way to get under his skin is to stop listening to him. Only because he is president are we forced to at least pay attention to what he says and tweets, but the significant majority of what he says is ignorable and of no value. Keith