Chapter 9 - Overview: Renewable Energy The oil price shocks of the 1970s and 1980s spurred a national movement to develop other kinds of energy and decrease our dependence on petroleum. In this period, Texas oil and gas production peaked and the industry began to play a diminishing yet still important role in the state's economy. As energy prices fell, however, interest in renewable energy sources waned.
Recent events, including dramatically higher oil prices and environmental concerns, again have led to heightened interest in renewable sources of energy, such as solar and wind energy, biomass, hydropower and geothermal power, which are virtually inexhaustible and relatively clean. In a sense, at the beginning of the 21st century, Texas has come full circle. Windmills that pumped water for farms and ranches in the late 1800s now stand in the shadow of giant wind turbines that generate electricity. Native Americans and settlers once gathered buffalo chips for fuel to build fires.
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