Podcast Summary: How Texas Became America’s Biggest Producer of Wind Energy

Podcast: How to Be a Better Human (from Speed & Scale)
Hosts: Anjali Grover & Ryan Panchatsram (with guest Pat Wood)
Original Air Date: October 16, 2025
Relevant Timestamps Below

Episode Overview

This episode dives into the unexpected rise of Texas as America's leader in wind energy. Hosts Anjali Grover and Ryan Panchatsram explore how a state known for oil and gas became a pioneer in renewable power by making pragmatic, data-driven policy choices. With insights from Pat Wood—former head of the Texas Public Utility Commission—they uncover the bipartisan, business-driven steps that led Texas to become “deep red turned a shade of green.”

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The 2021 Texas Power Crisis and Perceptions of Renewable Energy

• Setting the Stage (03:17-06:56)
  • The 2021 Texas winter storm caused mass blackouts.
  • Despite the grid being powered mostly by natural gas, politicians singled out wind energy as the culprit when some turbines froze.
  • Natural gas plants' equipment failed in the cold, not wind, but renewables became a political scapegoat.
  • Despite political backlash, anti-renewable bills largely failed because wind energy had become big business in Texas.

Memorable Quote:
"Natural gas let us down."
— Anjali Grover (04:35)

2. Why and How Texas Became #1 in U.S. Wind Energy

• Texas Turns “Green” (06:56-07:56)

  • Texas produces the most wind energy in the U.S., supplying about 25% of its electricity grid.

• Pat Wood’s Journey From Oil Roots to Wind Advocate (07:56-10:58)

  • Pat Wood grew up in oil country and assumed oil was inevitable in Texas.
  • Appointed by then-Governor George W. Bush, Wood was initially skeptical of renewables.
  • Bush famously told him:

    “Hey, Wood. Yes, sir. We like wind … now go get smart on it.”
    — George W. Bush via Pat Wood (10:36)

• Citizen Engagement Through Deliberative Polling (11:11-13:49)

  • Texas law required utilities to consult customers, leading to "deliberative polling."
  • Representative sample of Texans across ages and ideologies discussed energy issues deeply.
  • Takeaway: Texans overwhelmingly supported energy efficiency and renewables after learning the facts.
  • Notable story of “Smokin’ Jim” — an older man whose directness captured native support:

    “Pat, we gotta clean up the goddamn air. It needs to be cleaned up and we need to get more of this renewable energy.”
    — Pat Wood recalling a citizen (13:24)

3. Transforming Policy into Action

• Passing the Landmark Energy Bill (15:00-16:27)

  • With polling results supporting renewables, Pat Wood and Governor Bush included energy efficiency and renewables into Senate Bill 7 in 1999.
  • The “Renewable Portfolio Standard” set a goal: add 2,000 megawatts of renewables in 10 years—passed before California or New York had similar statutes.

• Governor Bush’s Motivations (16:33-17:32)

  • Bush grew up in windy Midland and recognized Texas’s unique wind resources.
  • Political pragmatism: compromise between a Republican Senate and a Democratic House enabled middle-ground achievements in multiple policy fields—including energy.

• Leveling the Playing Field (17:32-18:41)

  • For Pat Wood, supporting renewables wasn’t about being “virtuous”—it was fairness and letting a new industry compete.

    “I cared about it because … a new technology that was being kind of elbowed to the side by the big gas, big coal, and nuke in the traditional utilities. … We invite them to the party... And boy, did they ever win.”
    — Pat Wood (17:38-18:41)

4. Scaling Up: Infrastructure & Transmission

• Making Wind Energy Work (18:41-21:39)

  • Wind saw exponential growth after 2001, favored due to vast land, minimal regulatory hurdles, and Texas’s “If you build it, they will come” approach.

  • Texas invested $7 billion in new transmission lines (“Field of Dreams” project) to connect remote windy regions to urban centers.

  • The investment (about $300 per Texan) paid off many times over—lower energy bills, business incentives, and better air.

    “The return by having lower cost renewable electricity on our grid would pay for the $7 billion investment five times over in 10 years. So that’s like putting down a nickel to get a quarter.”
    — Pat Wood (22:06)

• Planning, Not Politics (21:49-23:09)

  • Key to success: forward-thinking planning and bipartisan acceptance.

  • Renewables were framed as a business and consumer benefit—not a partisan stance.

    “It was very non ideological… At the beginning, it was better for the wallet. And oh by the way, it happened to be better for the air.”
    — Pat Wood (22:06-23:00)

5. Lessons & Legacy

• Not Activism, Just Fairness (23:12-26:14)

  • Pat Wood, despite overseeing the largest clean energy deployment, doesn’t identify as a “climate activist.”

  • His drive came from a background of seeking fairness, influenced by his experience witnessing desegregation and learning social justice at home and church.

    “I think all the things that I tried to do as a regulator that are having, I think, beneficial impact today derived from the fact that I was hell bent to implement the statute that required non discrimination. And that's what got us where we are today.”
    — Pat Wood (25:35-26:14)

• Bipartisan and Pragmatic Success (26:14-28:31)

  • The Texas wind story surprises even climate experts: a Republican state, a Republican governor—beat California to clean energy policy.

  • Clean energy's mainstream acceptance grew because it made economic sense and became rooted before partisanship heightened.

    “Clean energy is both a smart business decision and a smart climate decision.”
    — Anjali Grover (28:26)

• Lasting Impact & Replicability (28:31-28:55)

  • Texas’s approach is simple:
    1. Add renewables
    2. Build transmission infrastructure
    3. Find the best locations and connect them—other states can copy this.
  • 32 states now have similar standards; Texas was a template.

6. Limits & The Road Ahead

• Not the Whole Climate Solution (27:45-28:26)

  • Texas increased wind, slashing grid emissions by over a quarter, even as its population rose.

  • Oil and gas production and industrial CO2 are still growing—more work is needed on transportation and other sectors.

    “At the end of the day, this is a story about opportunity... clean energy was too profitable to go away.”
    — Ryan Panchatsram (27:45-28:26)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Pat Wood on energy’s roots and Texas pride:
  "Renewable energy's here. It's Texan. It's flowing from God's breath and his shining off his face that's coming to us for free. Aren't we smart enough to take something free and do something good with it?"
  (14:04)

• Ryan’s realization:
  "This totally shatters every stereotype or preconception of where clean energy gets deployed the best."
  (26:31)

• Anjali’s perspective:
  "It proves, I think, that clean energy is both a smart business decision and a smart climate decision."
  (28:26)

• Pat Wood on historical fairness:
  "We benefit so much more by having a lot of different voices at the table and a lot of different technologies and players around the table. That's what makes us strong."
  (25:00)

Key Timestamps for Reference

• 03:17 – Power crisis and politics around renewables
• 07:36 – Texas becomes #1 in wind energy
• 08:42 – Pat Wood’s personal story with energy
• 10:36 – Governor Bush’s “We like wind” moment
• 13:24 – “Smokin’ Jim” and Texans' support for renewables
• 16:02 – Senate Bill 7 and the Renewable Portfolio Standard
• 18:50 – Wind and solar boom explained
• 20:17 – Field of Dreams transmission project
• 22:06 – The economics of Texas renewables
• 25:35 – Pat’s ethos: fairness and non-discrimination
• 27:15 – Texas’s grid emissions fall by a quarter
• 28:31 – Other states following Texas’s example

Tone & Style Recap

Throughout, the episode maintains an upbeat, surprising, and pragmatic tone—punctuated by Texan humor and plain-speak, particularly from Pat Wood. The hosts balance awe at Texas’s achievements with critical questions about longer-term climate goals and equity.

For Listeners

This episode is revelatory for anyone interested in climate solutions, politics, or Texas history. It offers a detailed, hopeful, and practical look at how big climate wins are possible—and how sometimes, the most unlikely places can lead the way.