The American Wind Energy Association announced on Thursday that domestic wind power capacity increased 45 percent last year.  According to the group’s release, 5,244 new megawatts of wind power were installed nationwide.

“The U.S. wind power fleet now numbers 16,818 MW and spans 34 states. American wind farms will generate an estimated 48 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of wind energy in 2008, just over 1% of U.S. electricity supply, powering the equivalent of over 4.5 million homes.”

With Illinois’ renewable energy pledge in the books, it will be interesting to see how fast wind power expands in the Midwest. According to an earlier report from AWEA, Illinois ranks 16th nationally in wind energy potential.  This map indicates wind power productivity potential in Illinois, with pink being the highest.