One of two approved offshore wind energy projects planned off Ocean City has informed a state regulatory agency its target date for operation has now been moved to 2026.
On Thursday, a coalition of labor, industry and environmental groups came together to ...endorse a new bill that would require California to set a target of constructing 3,000 megawatts of offshore wind by 2030 ...and 10,000 megawatts by 2040. Put in perspective, the larger target is nearly equal to the electrical generating capacity of all the large solar farms in California today and nearly double all the wind farms now operating on land in California.
“Environmentalists have not yet grasped the massive industrialization of the oceans now underway and proposed.” ...If the advisors on Biden’s climate team are serious about protecting the environment, now would be a good time for them to reconsider the massive industrialization of the oceans that is now underway. It might even make them think about preventing America’s existing fleet of nuclear reactors from being prematurely shuttered.
During Atlantic Shores’ second meeting with recreational fishermen on Wednesday, Jan. 27 concerning its plans to build a wind farm on a lease off Long Beach Island and parts south to Atlantic City, there was still no word on how many wind turbines the company plans to build.
The proceeding contends the town rushed the process through without the proper review and did so in part to thwart the residents’ efforts to incorporate the hamlet as a village. It also says the developer "purchased the town’s compliance," referring to a $28.9 million community benefits package offered by the developers as part of the deal.
“The Gulf of Maine looks huge but it's not, and 99 percent is being fished,” said Cushman. "16 miles is not a little area, and maybe just the beginning, we don’t know." He predicts fishermen will lose prime ground for lobstering, which will, in turn, cost them and the economy millions of dollars.
Vineyard Wind, the wind energy developer that aims to construct America’s first industrial scale offshore wind farm some 15 miles south of Aquinnah, has resuscitated its project permit process. The company formally pulled out from the federal permitting process on Dec 1.
In a letter to licensed commercial fishermen, Mills announced that she will ask the Legislature to approve a 10-year moratorium on new offshore wind projects in waters managed by the state, which extend three miles from shore. The ban, however, wouldn’t include the already permitted New England Aqua Ventus demonstration site off Monhegan island.
The East Hampton portion of the South Fork Wind Farm project would include some of the cable running beneath a beach in Wainscott, then to a power substation in East Hampton Village.
Too much too soon is how a noted oceanographer at the University of Rhode Island views offshore wind farm projects in New Jersey and other Northeast states. “There’s going to be hundreds or thousands of turbines off the East Coast, so it would be nice to understand these effects and how it translates into impacts before they get built,” Emeritus Professor John King has said in published reports. “Right now the government is pushing full speed ahead to get these things built, and I don’t think they really care that much about their impacts. The environmental reviews are being done really fast.”
The project to accommodate the offshore wind farm of two rich utilities, one foreign, started at $93 million, zoomed up to $157 million this time last year and is now more than $200 million and rising, the governor suggested, in what was almost an aside in the conversation. The state has agreed to cover all the cost overruns, which seem to be exploding, even before bids have been opened.
Climate change threatens many marine species, but some climate solutions pose risks, too. Researchers say offshore wind needs continued study and better regulations.
Bonnie Brady is executive director of the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association. She says the East Hampton Town Trustees should wait to see a stronger management plan for fisheries. "To date, there is not an effective fisheries mitigation plan. There is not an effective program for compensation for lost year and/or for survey work and what happens to fisherman when they aren’t allowed to fish in their areas," Brady said.
In a letter to lawmakers, Baker said he vetoed the bill in part because it would slow housing production, running contrary to the goals of the “housing choice” proposal within the economic development bill he signed into law Thursday. He also said the bill lacked tools local and state officials need to protect cities and towns against present-day natural disasters that can be traced back to climate change.
A New York project has emerged as a contender to be the nation’s first large-scale offshore wind farm, shifting the U.S. industry’s sights to a proposal that has encountered opposition from residents of a resort town in the Hamptons.
In his action Mr Sweetman claims the decisions to grant the licence are invalid as they allegedly contravene various sections of the EU directive on Habitats. He also claims there was a failure by the Ministers to publish the making of the decisions challenged or make available for public inspection any determination made in relation to the decisions.
Maine fishermen say that Gov. Janet Mills’ plan for a state-led offshore wind project is being rushed. And now news that a developer is considering a new commercial-scale wind project off the coast is adding to their fears.
After Massachusetts-based Vineyard Wind asked the Interior Department for a temporary pause in the federal permitting process, which can take years to complete, the department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management terminated the project. Now that the 800-megawatt wind farm is no longer under review, the developer will have to submit a new application. That will kick-start an environmental review that could take up to 18 months, according to various reports.
Gov. John Bel Edwards has set a goal for Louisiana to be carbon neutral by 2050, but so far, the state is behind its neighbors. Now, Edwards wants to develop offshore wind power in the Gulf.
Cllr Joe Behan said that he has very deep concerns regarding the visual impact of the project. 'You're making comparison with on-shore projects as if in some way you're being very generous with 10km.' He said that he was horrified by a visual representation of the likely view from Bray.