The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Energy have launched an initiative to help farmers cut costs and increase income using underutilized renewable technologies including smaller-scale wind projects.

Through the Rural and Agricultural Income & Savings from Renewable Energy initiative, USDA is setting an initial goal of helping 400 individual farmers nationwide deploy smaller-scale wind projects using USDA’s Rural Energy for America Program.

The announcement has the potential to make wind energy more accessible in Maine, according to USDA Rural Development Maine State Director Rhiannon Hampson. “This partnership between USDA and DOE creates new funding, technical assistance, and research and development opportunities,” said Hampson. “In Maine, we already offer free technical assistance to farmers and small businesses pursuing distributed wind energy through our REAP TAG program. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, and the new RAISE initiative, USDA will ensure that more farmers and other rural businesses can save money and earn income from distributed renewable energy technologies. These infrastructure improvements help protect the environment and combat climate change, providing tangible benefits to all Mainers.”

In 2023 USDA Rural Development in Maine awarded a REAP Technical Assistance Grant of $152,000 to Pecos Wind Power Inc. The company designs, builds, and sells wind turbines for distributed generation. Increasing the use of wind-generated power was one priority for the 2023 REAP TAG program, and the company was a successful applicant. Thanks to its USDA REAP TAG funding, Pecos Wind Power now offers free technical assistance to Maine farms and small businesses to help them plan wind generation projects and complete REAP proposals to help fund those projects.

Maine Rural Development is accepting REAP TAG applications from technical assistance providers through Friday, March 15. Contact Katrina Shaw, USDA RD Maine State Energy coordinator, at katrina.shaw@usda.gov or 207-990-9129 with questions about the REAP program or REAP TAG.

 

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