Kansas continues to be one of the leading states in renewable energy, especially with wind power.
Kansas is the fifth state to have at least 5000 megawatts of wind power capacity installed. The state is behind California, Oklahoma, Iowa and Texas, which has a capacity of a whopping 21,000 megawatts.
Kansans get 30 percent of their power from wind and solar. California is at 16 percent.
According to the report, Kansas now has enough wind power capacity to supply 1.5 million average homes. The industry employs 6,000 people in the state, and pays up to $15 million a year to farmers and ranchers for leasing space.
The U.S. now has more than 52,000 commercial wind turbines currently operating in 41 states, Guam and Puerto Rico.
--Aileen LeBlanc is news director at KMUW. Follow her on Twitter @Aileen_LeBlanc.
To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.
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