Could Ohio become 'Silicon Valley of alternative energy'?

If Ohio were to stop burning coal tomorrow, the state would shut down.

Eighty-six percent of Ohio's electric energy comes from coal combustion — a key factor in menacing climate change. That's about to change.
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The utility's alternative energy request is meant to meet a mandate passed this year by the Ohio General Assembly that the state generate 25 percent of its power from advanced or alternative sources by 2025. The mandate, coming years after other states set such standards, could one day make Ohio a top state for renewable energy generation.
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In some respects, the race for wind power conjures up the days of wildcatters searching for untapped oil deposits. Company reps armed with wind maps are combing high ground, signing up farmers for the right to site wind turbines on their land.
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Gov. Ted Strickland has targeted advanced energy as a key to revive Ohio. Studies say the state is positioned to play a heavy role in the manufacturing chain to produce renewable power generating equipment. That could mean jobs and money for the Dayton region's high and low tech industries. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, recently proclaimed in Dayton that Ohio could become the "Silicon Valley of alternative energy."

During eco-hero Obama's most recent fossil-fueled visit to Oahu, is the power to his rented $9 million beachfront estate provided by burning things like coal, old tires, and used motor oil?

Massive mounds of coal, shredded tires and a towering smokestack greet you as you enter the grounds of AES Hawaii's coal-fired power plant in Campbell Industrial Park.

But one thing that doesn't greet you is black smoke.

Belying preconceived notions about coal, AES operates a relatively clean-burning plant using alternate fuel sources, such as old tires and used motor oil, to help power the plant. The plant also burns carbon from Board of Water Supply filters.