US Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar is optimistic about the potential of wind power in the Atlantic Ocean.

Salazar, who is scheduled to host four regional public meetings in April to discuss the future of offshore energy development on the nation’s Outer Continental Shelf on the East Coast, said that offshore wind power could replace the amount of energy generated by 3,000 coal-fired plants.

He stated that windmills off the Atlantic Ocean could potentially produce a total of 1,000 GW of electricity.

As per the information available, shallow water wind energy alone could provide at least 20 percent of the electricity needs of almost all coastal states. And when deep-water potential is taken into account, the National Renewable Energy Lab has identified more than 1,000 gigawatts (GW) of wind potential off the Atlantic coast, and more than 900 GW of wind potential off the Pacific Coast. The Lab estimates that the wind power potential off the coasts of the lower 48 states exceeds the entire U.S. electricity demand.