We better do something quickly. The United States is in for big trouble unless we get ourselves in gear and start taking advantage of alternatives to coal-burning power plants.

Fossil fuels are disappearing rapidly. If we plan to continue inhabiting this planet, it’s time to lose the non-renewable resources.

Oh, but wait, there are all those wonderful advantages to using fossil fuels, including price hikes, higher asthma rates, global warming and acid rain.

Convinced we need to pump serious time and effort into fossil fuel and limited resource alternatives yet?

The foremost alternative to fossil fuel is wind energy. I bet you didn’t know that the Midwest is even a leader in the push for wind energy in the United States. They don’t call us the “Saudia Arabia of wind energy” for nothing.

Believe it or not, that very title includes Iowa. Not only are we included in that title, we’re even one of the leaders. According to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Iowa is the nation’s third-largest producer of electricity from wind, behind only Minnesota and California. Northwest Iowa is where it’s at.

Major wind farms are located in the Alta, Clear Lake and Algona areas. Not too shabby, but there’s a lot of work to be done.

We have a unique opportunity as a state to become the nation’s wind energy leader, paving the way for nationwide revolution. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says that our very own state has the potential to produce 4.8 times its own annual electrical consumption with wind energy.

Moreover, almost 40 percent of Iowa’s land has wind production potential. If that isn’t a prime opportunity, I don’t know what is.

The advantages are not only environmental. The economic and social benefits also abound. According to Windustry, a Minnesota-based nonprofit organization, southwest Minnesota generates about $1 million per year in tax revenue and about $250,000 per year in direct lease payments to landowners for every 100 MW of wind development.

Although the initial investment to construct the turbines is substantial, they are more than worth it when you look down the road. There are rapid improvements in technology that are making things constantly easier. In the early1980s, the cost of wind generated electricity was $ .40 per kWh. That has now dropped to $.03-$.05 per kWh today.

Let’s face it, we are rapidly running out of coal. Imagine the benefits for rural economies when the fossil fuels start to fade out and the prices skyrocket and the power companies come running to locally-run wind farms for power.

It is a perfect opportunity to diversify Iowan rural economies. Because of the advances in technology, the decrease in capital costs, and promising legislation, we find ourselves in a great position.

I challenge you to take on a proactive role and tell your legislators to support wind energy for Iowa. We can’t sink the boat on this one.

Wind energy is an environmentally sound, affordable and sustainable way to generate electricity and it’s high time Iowa takes full advantage of its great opportunity to become the nation’s leading producer.

Omar Tesdell is a freshman in journalism and mass communication from Slater. He is webmaster of the Daily.