Sow The Wind, Reap The Hurricane - Wind Energy Up 39% In 2009

Last year, the nation's use of wind energy skyrocketed more than 39% above 2008 levels. While this is still a small fraction of the country's overall energy consumption (2%), the fact that wind is growing quickly - and actually working - is pleasantly surprising.

I am an energy person and I could write paragraphs about the downfalls of wind. Instead, I'll just shorten it up and say that wind is not a constant source of power. Even the windiest populated parts of the country do not have 95-100% wind strong enough to power a field of turbines to make enough juice for a small city throughout the night and day. That is a big drawback, and the reason why wind will never be anywhere near the main source of electricity in this country. Besides, creating enough acreage of windmills suitable for mass-scale energy production is extremely expensive.

With that being said, wind companies offer a lucrative investment for the savvy energy investor. Wind usage will more than likely increase this year (and in years to come), simply because technology will gradually become cheaper - and windmills cheaper to operate. The industry is growing and growing quickly. Together with natural gas, it accounted for 80% of all new energy production last year. That is amazing.

Of course, more downfalls. Stimulus money has driven a lot of this growth and is drying up. Plus, electric consumption nationwide has declined for the second year in a row - the first time this has happened in over 50 years. This last point may not be as bad, though, because I'll bet consumption will increase this year as the economy starts to pick up a bit.

Look into this ETF: First Trust ISE Global Wind Energy Index Fund (NASDAQ: FAN). Growth has risen 50% over the year and should increase steadily until the winter. Wind is promising, and it's a good opportunity for an investor to take a stab at the alternate energy industry.