The Wind Energy GIS displayed wind energy-related spatial data with a standard web browser. The Wind Energy GIS features 10 categories of data layers: background; wind energy-related; transmission and infrastructure; geopolitical; hydrology; land ownership, designation and usage; elevation; land cover; ecosystem and climate; and soils.
Layers
Users selected from five options for the background:
- Terraserver-USGS topographic map
- Terraserver Digital Ortho-Quadrangle
- JPL Landsat Global Mosaic
- Terraserver Urban Areas
- Bing Maps Virtual Earth
Wind energy-related data layers included the location of U.S. wind energy power plants; the NREL wind power classification map; state-by-state renewable portfolio standards, and installed wind capacity by state. Transmission and infrastructure layers included the location of transmission lines (as shown by a 1993 report by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), NEXRAD RADAR sites, location of airports, location of railroads, and an open street map. Geopolitical layers showed 110th Congressional Districts of the US, country boundary, US states, US counties, and the population of US counties.
The hydrology layer showed the US river network. Land ownership, designation and usage layers illustrated boundaries of federal lands and Indian lands, as well as the renewable energy generation potential on Environmental Protection Agency tracked sites according to the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER) Center for Program Analysis (OCPA). Elevation or land cover layers showed related information.
The ecosystem and climate layers displayed:
Users could view ranges of five bat species of concern. Bats were killed by wind turbines because the spinning blades cause a drop in air pressure which results in barotrauma.
Finally, the soils layer illustrated FAO soil classifications in the US.[1]