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| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
| State Rep. Greg Vitali
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Vitali backs ChoosePAWind initiative
HARRISBURG, Jan. 24 – State Rep. Greg Vitali, D-Delaware, today participated in a Capitol news conference announcing an initiative to promote the use of Pennsylvania-generated wind power.
"The ChoosePAWind initiative is a way for individual consumers who have concerns with sources of power such as coal, natural gas and nuclear to take action and encourage development of clean, renewable sources of energy," Vitali said.
Residents and businesses can visit the website, www.choosepawind.com, and click on the "Buy PA Wind" link at the top of the page to receive instructions on how they can choose wind as their source of power.
Pennsylvania has 900 megawatts of installed wind power capacity. That's enough to power 240,000 homes and reduce carbon dioxide emissions equal to taking about 250,000 cars off the road. Pennsylvania has the potential to develop 4,000 megawatts of wind power – enough to meet the needs of nearly 1.2 million homes a year.
Vitali added that the wind industry is important for the state's economy. He said the construction and operation of a wind farm create jobs, and goods and services needed for the projects boost the economy.
He said a 25- to 30-turbine wind farm will provide $20 million in tax payments to townships, counties and school districts.
The ChoosePAWind initiative comprises 14 wind farm companies and its supporters include the American Lung Association, Clean Air Council and PennFuture.
Also participating in the news conference were former state Department of Environmental Protection Secretary John Hanger, Sierra Club Pennsylvania Chapter Director Jeff Schmidt, and representatives of the wind energy companies Everpower and Gamesa.
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