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4 „2 Rene"NPIrable Il hergy Deve1g,,,:7ilflwnt In the United States, more than 90% of CO2 released comes from the combustion of fossil fuels (Lieber- man et al. 2007). Concerns about global climate change and air quality are driving increased interest in alternative energy resources. Expanding develop- ment and use of renewable energy in the U.S., such as wind, solar, or biofuels, will reduce dependence on fossil fuels and decrease harmful greenhouse gas emis- sion, reduce environmental pollution, and increase energy security. However, the sustainable develop- ment of renewable fuel alternatives will also require an understanding of how alternative energy produc- tion and associated land -use choices may affect important ecological systems (Dale et al. 2010). In the U.S., states have been creating policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions for many years, although efforts have expanded and intensified in the past several years (Rabe 2002). Given the complex- ity and diversity of emissions and mitigation, states have promoted a variety of legislative policies on renewable energy, air pollution control, agriculture, forestry, waste management, transportation, and energy development, among others (Rabe 2002). In almost all cases there have been multiple drivers behind, and multiple benefits from, these state poli- cies (Rabe 2002). In this section, we summarize a few of the relevant federal and state renewable energy incentives avail- able in North Carolina and implications for wildlife and habitat in the state. We also review regions that have been identified as high potential for alterna- tive energy, and evaluate available research on the impacts of biofuels and wind energy production on North Carolinas land use and biodiversity. 4,27 [,?e 1e;'vvahle The state of North Carolina has a 30 plus year history in providing tax incentives for the use and application of alternative energy technologies (NC Department of Revenue 2009). To promote and encourage the increased use of renewable energy, the 1977 session of the North Carolina General Assembly enacted legislation that provided incentives in the form of a tax credit for the construction or installation of solar energy systems to heat, cool, or provide hot water to buildings in North Carolina. Throughout the years, other tax credits encouraging investment in additional renewable resources such as hydroelec- tric, solar and wind energy, or methanol gas, were enacted. The 1999 session of the General Assembly unified these multiple incentives into one statute that addresses nearly all renewables (§ 105- 129.15/16A). This statute provides a tax credit for personal and corporate taxpayers of 35% of the cost of renew- able energy property constructed, purchased or leased by a taxpayer and placed into service in North Carolina during the taxable year (§ 105- 129.15/16A). This effort has provided an important incentive for the development and use of alternative energy in North Carolina. In 2007, the North Carolina legislature took criti- cal steps towards requiring electric utilities to embrace energy alternatives to meet the state's power demands. When signed into law by Governor Easley, North Carolina was the first state in the Southeast to require electric utilities to tap renewable and efficien- cy programs to meet the state's growing energy needs (Murawski 2007). Under the law (S.L. 2007 -397, Box 4 -2) utility companies in the state need to meet the alternative energy criteria set in the "Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard.” By 2021, electric public utilities must meet 12.5% of retail electricity demand through renewable energy or energy efficiency measures, and electric member- ship corporations and municipalities that sell electric power in the state would have to meet a standard of 10% by 2018. Resources that can be used to meet the standard include solar energy, wind ener- gy, hydropower, geothermal energy, ocean current or wave energy, biomass resources, and energy effi- ciency measures. The law also includes provisions to