• In 2007, the first phase of a 750-megawatt, zero-emission wind farm, in Benton County, began development for energy delivery in 2008. It is the largest wind farm under construction in the country. Once in full operation, the wind farm should generate enough carbon-free electricity to power more than 200,000 homes.

• Including other wind farms, there may be a total of 880 megawatts added to the power grid by the end of 2008. Additional projects also are in development.
  
  
• Indianapolis Power and Light partnered with the Wabash Valley Power Association to buy Renewable Energy Certificates for power generated at a landfill methane recovery facility. The percentage is set to rise to eight percent in 2008 to 20 percent in 2020.
  
  
• West Lafayette is turning fats, grease and oil into energy that runs their wastewater treatment plant. This partnership with IDEM received an U.S. EPA innovation award.



• In June 2008, the Indiana Finance Authority Environmental Programs will host the first IFA Sustainability Workshop. The event will feature leaders in the developing field of sustainable infrastructure and green development. The workshop will illustrate how private and public entities have used local, state, national and market incentives to successfully promote and implement sustainability.
  
  

Thanks to Governor Daniels’ leadership, Indiana has seen record growth in its biofuels industry. Today it is home to nearly 20 biofuels plants, producing ethanol and biodiesel. Those companies have brought good-paying jobs to rural areas and made Indiana a top-five producer of biofuels in the nation.

• The State of Indiana’s fleet includes 941 E85 flex fuel and 1,881 diesel vehicles that can use biodiesel.
  
  
• Statewide, Indiana has 100 E85 pumps – the third highest amount in the nation. In 2005, there were no E85 gas pumps in the state.
  
  
• In partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy, Indiana is leading a multi-state project to establish the nation’s first E85 corridor, along I-65, from Lake Michigan to the Gulf of Mexico.
  
  

• In 2007, construction was approved for Indiana’s first commercial scale integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) clean coal plant. This 630-megawatt facility will produce virtually no emissions while providing Indiana with a needed new source of electricity. It will be the first carbon capture and storage IGCC plant with the capability of on-site storage for up to 20 percent of the plant’s CO2 emissions and is one of only two to be awarded federal tax credits.
  
  
• Governor Daniels also extended clean coal tax credits to synthetic natural gas production.
  

• Indiana’s AEP grant program provided $715,655.80 to our state’s public, non-profit and private businesses for the purchase of alternative energy systems. A total of 21 projects were funded to offset fossil fuel usage and to serve as an educational tool.

• Looking to the future of agriculture as an alternative energy source, Governor Daniels launched BioTown, USA. The first of its kind in the United States, BioTown is working to meet all of its energy needs with renewable resources. It is an example of Governor Daniels’ ingenuity and commitment to reducing our dependence on foreign oil while creating new opportunities for Indiana farmers and rural communities.

• Governor Daniels issued an Executive Order requiring that all new state (and public university) buildings be designed, constructed, operated, and maintained to achieve maximum energy efficiency to the extent this can be accomplished on a cost-effective basis, considering construction and operating costs over a building’s life cycle.
  
  
• The last five new state buildings were constructed to energy efficient certification standards (LEEDs).
  
  
• Computer upgrades, currently underway, will produce $400,000 energy savings annually.
  
  
• In 2007, $500,000 in rebates were made available to homeowners installing geothermal heat pump systems.
  
  
• In 2007, the Indiana General Assembly enacted a tax credit for purchasing EnergyStar-rated appliances. The $100 credit, per household, goes into effect in January 2009.

In 2007, Governor Daniels signed SEA 45 which made Indiana the first state to ratify the
Great Lakes Compact with implementation language to prevent diversions of water from our Great Lakes – which contain 95 percent of North America’s fresh water. The compact ensures:

• Authority over Great Lakes water uses stays in the region.
  
  
• Economic development will be fostered through sustainable use and responsible management of the waters.
  
  
• States will develop goals and objectives for water conservation and efficiency and collect and share technical data to improve decision-making.

Land Conservation

• Since 2005, Indiana has acquired title or conservation easements to more than 24,000 acres of land. This includes the restoration of 8,000 acres of wetlands at Goose Pond in southwest Indiana. Indiana will continue to make purchases that preserve and expand opportunities for Hoosiers to hunt, fish and hike.
  
  
• The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reached an agreement in principle with the owners of the former Penn Central Rail Line to purchase more than 150 miles of abandoned railroad corridors - nearly doubling rail trail corridors in the state. The pieces of the line are located in 39 counties. DNR will give the land to local governments and not-for-profit groups for future trail expansions. The state’s goal is to have a trail within 15 minutes of every Hoosier within 10 years.

Trash

• The Indiana Government Center cafeteria has begun offering biodegradable green wares.
  
  
• The State is following a test project in Lake County in which municipal waste would be converted into ethanol.

Air Quality

• In 2004, 39 percent of Indiana’s population lived in areas that exceeded the ozone standard. By 2007, only 15 percent of the population lived in counties that exceeded the ozone standard – a 61.5 percent reduction.
  
  
• In 2004, during the first year of the auto mercury switch program, the state collected 5,527 switches from cars sent to steel mills as recycled metal - equating to 12.16 pounds of mercury.

Water Quality

Governor Daniels delivered the first state increase in conservation funding in more than two decades with an increase in the Clean Water Indiana initiative. Under his oversight, the first-ever cost-share conservation program (CREP) was signed with USDA. Indiana landowners will reap more than $1 million in state dollars, and the effort has leveraged an additional $11.3 million in federal dollars.

• In 2007, the IFA funded $175 million for drinking and wastewater improvements in 21 Indiana communities crossing the $2 billion mark for the program.
  
  
• In 2007, Indiana’s Drinking Water State Revolving Fund program received a national award for innovative lending practices. Leveraging funds created a two-to-one return on investment.
  
  
• In 2008, Indiana was one of only eight states to receive a two gold star awards from the U.S. EPA. One of these awards recognizes IDEM’s aggressive work in reducing pollution discharge (NPDES) permits.
  
  
• During wet weather events, combined sewer overflows (CSO) in many cities and towns dump untreated raw sewage directly into streams and rivers. IDEM is working closely with communities which have CSOs to develop and implement cost-effective plans to eliminate these antiquated systems.
  
  
• In 2005, only 10 of 100 Indiana communities either had a plan or already controlled CSOs. Today, 74 communities have CSO plans – a 640 percent increase.
  
  
• By 2009, every Indiana community will have a CSO plan in place.
  
  
• These improvements represent major environmental and financial commitments. For example, the Indianapolis CSO plan will cost $1.8 billion and take 20 years to complete.