Blowback on windmills

Re. U.S. jobs: If the Trib's charge in the editorial "The windmills sham: Blowing tax dollars" (Feb. 15 and TribLIVE.com) is that the U.S. wind energy industry is trying to attract global companies to invest in America, build wind farms, open manufacturing facilities and create jobs, we plead guilty. Ask any of the 85,000 people employed in wind energy today in Pennsylvania and across the country whether they are more worried about the company logo on their shirts than about keeping or finding jobs in the midst of our current economic crisis.

We need and want more jobs, not fewer. The truth is that up to half of America's 85,000 wind energy jobs would have been lost last year without the Recovery Act.

The American University Investigative Reporting Workshop findings that the editorial refers to claim foreign turbine makers have received stimulus funds. Not true.

The convertible tax credit program it refers to is not for manufacturers. One hundred percent of that credit goes to wind projects built in the U.S., creating local jobs in construction, transportation, engineering and operations.

America needs to compete aggressively in the global clean energy marketplace and has abundant winds to tap. Wind can provide 20 percent of U.S. electricity or more by 2030 while supporting more than 500,000 jobs.

Sarah Howell

Washington, D.C.

The writer is vice president, public affairs, for the American Wind Energy Association (awea.org).