Waste from “clean energy” piles up across the U.S.
By
Bonner Cohen, Ph. D.
|
March 3rd, 2026
Long known as the nation’s leading producer of oil, Texas in recent years has also surged to the top of the heap in wind energy, with over 19,000 wind turbines operating in the state.
West Texas and the Panhandle have emerged as the gusty go-to places for putting the Lone Star State at the forefront of what was said to be America’s transition to clean energy. Ground zero for this enterprise is Sweetwater in Nolan County. Located 40 miles west of Abelene, Sweetwater is sometimes called the “Wind Turbine Capital of Texas.” But now the small city and its environs are experiencing the downsides of that distinction. It turns out that clean can be very dirty indeed.
In February, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced his office was suing Global Fiberglass Solutions, Inc. and all affiliated entities for allegedly “dumping thousands of wind turbine blades and related materials at two disposal sites in Sweetwater, Texas,” KTAB/KRBC reported. The suit, filed on behalf of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, alleges the company failed to properly dispose of turbines it was hired to dismantle, transport, and recycle, resulting in the illegal stockpiling of over 3,000 turbine blades in Sweetwater. Some of the industrial waste abandoned in Sweetwater dates to 2017, prompting Paxton’s office to seek up to $1 million in civil damages.
https://www.cfact.org/2026/03/03/waste-from-clean-energy-piles-up-across-the-u-s/
