The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) has announced the development of the Distributed Wind Policy Comparison Tool, which is designed to give policymakers information about potential state and local government policy options – including rebates, tax incentives, and ways of overcoming zoning and interconnection hurdles – to encourage the rapid deployment of distributed wind energy systems.
The tool, developed by eFormative Options LLC, allows sensitivity analyses to be conducted on various policy options and assumptions, the EERE says. These analyses model the impacts of policies and incentives, and identify combinations of policies that may help to encourage the efficient use of public and ratepayer funds.
The tool was developed in collaboration with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the DOE's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the North Carolina Solar Center, and is free to site visitors.
