Wind Energy
What is it?
Wind energy harnesses the natural movement of air to generate clean, renewable electricity. Large turbines capture the energy of moving air and convert it into power for the electric grid.
Generation & Environmental Impact
Wind turbines use large blades connected to a rotor to capture the energy of moving air, which powers an electric generator without burning fossil fuels or producing direct greenhouse gas emissions during operation.
- Clean: Generates electricity without direct greenhouse gas or air pollution emissions during operations.
- Renewable: Harnesses naturally occurring wind to produce electricity without consuming a finite fuel resource.
- High Capacity: Utility-scale wind farms can generate significant amounts of clean electricity from a relatively small number of turbines, supporting larger-scale renewable energy generation.
Fitting Into the Energy Mix
Wind is an established but still developing part of Maryland’s renewable energy portfolio. All the state’s existing wind farms are in the mountains of Western Maryland, where they provide a combined 245 MW of generating capacity. Higher elevations and stronger wind resources make this region the center of Maryland’s wind energy production, providing locally generated renewable electricity that helps diversify the state’s energy supply and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.