Wind power in South Dakota facts for kids
South Dakota is a big leader in the U.S. when it comes to making electricity from wind power. In 2017, over 30% of the state's electricity came from wind!
In 2016, South Dakota had 583 wind turbines. These turbines could make 977 megawatts (MW) of power. By 2019, this power grew to 1,525 MW.
South Dakota is one of the windiest states in the country. It has enough wind to install a huge 882,000 MW of power! This could generate 2,902 billion kWh of electricity each year. Just like in Texas, building new wind farms depends on having enough power lines to carry the electricity.
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How Wind Power Grew in South Dakota
South Dakota's first wind farm was called the South Dakota Wind Energy Center. It was built in 2003.
In 2018, very tall wind turbines were put up in the state. These turbines were 324 feet high and could each make 2,300 kilowatts of power.
By the end of 2018, South Dakota had 1,018 megawatts of wind power already running. Another 200 megawatts of wind energy was being built. Plus, plans were approved for 673 more megawatts at many different places.
Wind Power Capacity Over Time
Wind power capacity is how much electricity wind farms can make. Here's how South Dakota's wind power capacity has grown:
- 2000: 0 MW
- 2003: 44.3 MW (when the first wind farm opened!)
- 2007: 98.3 MW
- 2010: 709.2 MW
- 2015: 977 MW
- 2019: 1,525 MW
- 2020: 2,305 MW
This shows how quickly South Dakota has added more wind turbines to make clean energy.
How Much Wind Electricity South Dakota Made
This is how much electricity (in million kilowatt-hours) wind farms in South Dakota actually produced each year:
- 2002: 4
- 2003: 43
- 2004: 158
- 2009: 420
- 2010: 1,371
- 2011: 2,668
- 2016: 3,714
- 2020: 5,545
- 2021: 9,322
- 2022: 10,325
As you can see, the amount of electricity made from wind has grown a lot!
Wind Farms in South Dakota
South Dakota has many wind farms across the state. These are places where many wind turbines are grouped together to make a lot of electricity. The map shows some of the main wind power projects.
Images for kids
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How much wind power each U.S. state made in 2013.
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Wind power per person in each U.S. state in 2013.
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How much wind power capacity each U.S. state had per square mile in 2013.
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For over 100 years, windmills like this Aermotor have been used to pump water across the Midwest.
