Biden administration says solar energy has the potential to power 40% of US electricity by 2035
Wind energy sector booms during 2020
Low costs and increased government investment saw the U.S. wind energy sector grow — and future predictions suggest more growth.
The Department of Energy documents record wind power growth in 2020.
Twenty-five states saw new wind turbine installations, and 16 received more than 10 percent of their energy from wind farms.
More construction and investment in the wind turbine sector aid the Biden administration’s plan for a net zero economy by 2050.
The wind power sector is booming in the U.S., with a new report from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) highlighting the growth of wind energy operations in the nation, as part of President Biden's larger plan to get the U.S. to net zero emissions by 2035.
More than 16,000 megawatts of U.S. wind power-generating capacity was installed in 2020, a record yearly figure. It marks the first time wind power developments outpaced solar power installations, culminating in $24.6 billion in investment across 25 states.
Sixteen states total get more than 10 percent of electricity from land-based wind generation, with some in the midwest like Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota and North Dakota getting more than 30 percent of their power from wind installations.
"These reports contain such terrific news: the U.S. installed a record-breaking amount of land-based wind energy last year. They underscore both the progress made and the capacity for much more affordable wind power to come - all necessary to reach President Biden's goal of a decarbonized electricity sector by 2035," said Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. "At DOE, we will double down on efforts to deploy more wind energy around the country as we also pursue technologies to make turbines even cheaper and more efficient."
This growth applies to both onshore and offshore wind turbine installations.
Coastal states like New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maryland and Virginia are all seeing major development in wind turbines located on the water. Some notable projects include the Block Island Wind Farm off the coast of Rhode Island and the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind pilot, as well as the Vineyard Wind I project in Massachusetts waters.
Overall, these installations contributed to a 24-percent increase in offshore wind energy pipeline construction in U.S. waters.
A statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee was removed from its pedestal in Virginia's capital city Wednesday morning. The 21-foot-tall statue on Monument Avenue in Richmond was one of the largest remaining Confederate monuments in the U.S. — and has long drawn protests as a symbol of racial injustice.
It took crews roughly an hour to remove the statue from its 40-foot pedestal, according to CBS affiliate WTVR. Large crowds cheered as they watched the statue come down from its prominent spot in the city that served as the capital of the Confederacy during the Civil War.
Richmond, Virginia Removes Statue Of Confederate General Robert E. Lee
Crews remove a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee on Monument Avenue, September 8, 2021 in Richmond, Virginia.
STEVE HELBER / GETTY IMAGES
In a statement, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam noted that the statue of Lee was the last Confederate statue remaining on Monument Avenue. Officials in Richmond have removed more than a dozen other Confederate statues on city land over the past year.
"The public monuments reflect the story we choose to tell about who we are as a people," Northam said. "It is time to display history as history, and use the public memorials to honor the full and inclusive truth of who we are today and in the future."
BREAKING: Crews remove Lee statue in Richmond, Va.
BREAKING: Crews are in the process of removing the statue to Confederate general Robert E. Lee in Richmond, Virginia.
Posted by WTVR CBS 6 News on Wednesday, September 8, 2021
The governor had announced plans to remove the statue in 2020, shortly after nationwide protests against police brutality and racial injustice broke out following the murder of George Floyd. Many, including Northam, have described the statue as one that symbolizes the hate that millions were protesting against.
Its removal was delayed by court challenges, but the Virginia Supreme Court ruled last week that the state could go ahead with plans to take it down.
The statue was erected in 1890, "during a time in which southern states were working to reinforce white supremacist systems and structures," Northam's statement says.
The 13-ton bronze statue will have to be cut into pieces to be able to fit under highway overpasses.
It is set to be put in secure storage at a state facility until officials can find a permanent home for it.
The 40-foot-tall granite pedestal that held the statue will remain for the time being while officials figure out what to do with it. Some racial justice advocates have suggested keeping the now graffiti-covered pedestal in place as a symbol of the protest movement.
A similar statue of Lee and one of General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson were taken down in Charlottesville, Virginia, in July. That was site of the deadly 2017 "Unite the Right" rally in which Heather Heyer, a peaceful counter-protester, was killed.
Zyahna Bryant, who had started a petition for the Charlottesville statue to be removed in 2016, while she was still in high school, told CBSN following its removal that taking down Confederate statues does not erase history, as opponents have argued. Rather, she said, "erecting these monuments is whitewashing our history."
"It's a monumental first step, but it's only a first step," she told CBSN. "...We're no longer offering a platform for white supremacy.
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