Tag Archives: offshore wind
Nation’s first mega-offshore wind project stalled for additional study
On most afternoons in Point Judith, Rhode Island, commercial fisherman Brian Loftus steers his trawler back into port after a 12-hour day. Loftus unloaded some 1,500 pounds of whiting, scup, skate and squid. Estimated revenue: $3,000. Loftus has fished for three decades here, but to him there’s a looming problem: Offshore wind developers plan to plop turbines more than 70 stories high into his fishing grounds. >click to read< 08:46
Will Connecticut Gov. Lamont entertain public input on a wind-only port?
Let’s all humor Gov. Ned Lamont and join him in looking away from the messy scandals at the Connecticut Port Authority and concentrate instead on the wind deal that the troubled agency hatched, a plan that could close the port of New London to traditional cargo for the better part of a generation. If I have the governor’s timetable correct, there will soon be a grand unveiling of the final $93 million plan, as already sketched out in permit applications, to convert New London’s port to a giant wind turbine assembly pad. >click to read< 10:20
Collision Course: Offshore Wind Turbines Present New (Unnecessary) Mortal Danger for Trawlermen
The fishermen who work off America’s Atlantic coast, are furious over plans to spear thousands of industrial wind turbines into their fishing grounds, destroying not only the seabed (the source of their income and prosperity), but wrecking their fishing grounds, forever. Trawlermen off the New Jersey coast have already told developers what they can do with their projects: Deepwater in Deep Trouble: Fishermen Tell Off-Shore Wind Farm Developers to F@*#K Off,,, >click to read< 08:21
CT offshore wind may face some rough seas
The state and its offshore-wind-loving neighbors all face a year-end expiration of a federal tax credit that helps finance these projects – the first major attempts in the U.S. But in Connecticut some problems – including at least one self-inflicted one – could mean forgoing that money.,, One part of that balancing act involves the fishing industry, which seems to have driven the delay after the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), a division of NOAA, refused to sign off on the Vineyard Wind environmental impact statement. Indeed, the fishing industry is among the few cheering the government’s protracted analysis of the plan.,,, >click to read< 09:48
UPDATED: News Media Bungled Vineyard Wind Ocean Turbine Reporting – Vineyard Wind decision delayed until December 2020
In the past ten years, journalism has seen a sudden shift and the overwhelming urge to promote one ideology over another. The majority of news outlets have decided to back commercial wind turbines on land and sea as their contribution to the environment. When you read stories about the Vineyard ocean wind project you have to look for what was left out of the story not what is in the story.,,, Pictures in the print media over the past month show a small fishing boat near an ocean wind turbine saying that less than a mile apart leaves the fishing industry plenty of room to continue their industry. What the media is leaving out is two ESPs, Electric Service Platforms,,, cables exposed,,, >click to read< 08:59
Sources: Vineyard Wind decision delayed until December 2020 – >click to read<
Marine Mammal Protection Act: Incidental Harassment Authorization Regulatory “Takes” – Take a Close Look
An IHA is a legal and enforceable document presenting the terms and conditions with which a company must adhere in order to protect wildlife. In this case, the draft IHA was for Vineyard Wind, the wind energy company ready to start construction on an 800 MW offshore wind farm in the Atlantic, covering about 675 square kilometers, starting 14 miles from the coastline of Martha’s Vineyard.,,, An IHA is required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) because, obviously, a huge project like this has impacts and it’s likely that “take” of marine mammals will occur during construction. >click to read< 08:26
Castle Wind signs MoU for 1GW California floater
Floating wind power developer Castle Wind has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with a Californian utility to enter into a power purchase agreement for output from a 1GW offshore wind farm in the US Pacific Ocean.,,, EnBW North America and Trident Winds joint venture Castle Wind is in the early stages of developing the 1000MW project, located about 30 miles off the coast from the city of Morro Bay.,,, Last year the Morro Bay Commercial Fisherman’s Organisation and the Port San Luis Commercial Fishermen Association, entered into a mutual benefits agreement >click to read< 12:30
Vineyard Wind, welcome to our world…
Headline – Trump admin throws wrench into offshore wind plans – The Trump administration is ordering a sweeping environmental review of the burgeoning offshore wind industry, a move that threatens to derail the nation’s first major project and raises a host of questions for future developments. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, a division of the Interior Department, is ordering a study of the cumulative impact of a string of projects along the East Coast. The review comes in response to concerns from fishermen about the impact of offshore wind development on East Coast fisheries. Must watch video! >click to read< 17:15
NY spending $2M to study offshore wind impact on waterways, fishing
New York State said Thursday it will spend more than $2 million for five studies to examine ways to reduce offshore wind farms’ impact on marine environments and commercial fishing.,,, Bonnie Brady, executive director of the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association, offered tepid applause for the state’s decision to award the study grants. “It’s great that we’ve gotten some funding but there’s a ticking time bomb once these turbines hit the water,” Brady said. “The monitoring and research should have started long ago, so we are playing catch-up to try to get data we need to make sure we do no harm.”Said Brady, “Being an environmentalist means you do no harm, but everyone is throwing that out the window”, >click to read< 08:57
European utility sees big opportunity in U.S. offshore wind – One of Europe’s largest utilities intends to become a player in the U.S. offshore wind industry, as it sees the Northeast as the biggest opportunity in the worldwide market. >click to read<
Cost-Effective ‘Renewable’ Energy Is Like Unobtanium: A Fictional Construct
We must continue diversifying our energy supply, that means increasing our output of solar, wind, geothermal, hydro- and ocean-based energy,,, Blah, blah, blah. Anyone who works in real energies will probably know a different story.,,, energy expert, Mark P. Mills, describing the vast quantity of non-renewable, not-even-recyclable waste that nifty green energy baubles such as wind-farm turbines generate,,, “Renewable energy” is a misnomer. Wind and solar machines and batteries are built from nonrenewable materials. And they wear out. Old equipment must be decommissioned, generating millions of tons of waste.,,, Building one wind turbine requires 900 tons of steel, 2,500 tons of concrete and 45 tons of nonrecyclable plastic. >click to read< 14:57
New York fishes for information in offshore wind research
NYSERDA President and CEO Alicia Barton said: “As New York becomes the national epicentre for the US offshore wind industry, we continue to undertake evidence-based environmental and commercial fishing related research to help us advance offshore wind development in a way that is sensitive to the environment, ocean and the economy.,,, The state intends to use evidence-based environmental and commercial fishing related research to help advance offshore wind development. In other words, bend over! >click to read<12:34
New York picks five projects to advance responsible development of offshore wind – The selected projects include, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) with the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) and others, Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA), Biodiversity Research Institute, Ecology and Environment, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Approximately $2 million was made available as part of this competitive solicitation for projects in one of five categories: >click to read<
You Asked, We Answered: How Will Vineyard Wind’s Compensation Plan To Fishermen Actually Work?
The development for the country’s first large scale offshore wind farm is currently at a standstill. Federal officials have delayed approval of the Vineyard Wind project because of continuing concerns about the impacts it could have on New England commercial fishermen from safety issues to lost fishing grounds. This week, one of our listeners wanted to know more about Vineyard Wind’s compensation plans that are setup to address these issues. South Coast Reporter Nadine Sebai has been extensively covering offshore wind in the region and is here to talk with us. >click to read< 08:06
Offshore wind deal pushing forward at New London State Pier
Three months after Gov. Ned Lamont’s May 2 announcement of the deal, state and local officials, State Pier operator Gateway and Danish offshore wind giant Orsted and its partner Eversource say negotiations are on schedule, with attorneys likely to finalize details and sign a contract within a few months.,,, Meanwhile, the Connecticut Auditors of Public Accounts is set to begin its biennial audit of the authority amid a whistleblower complaint alleging misuse of funds. >click to read< 13:18
Killing Whales To Save Polar Bears: Wind Turbine Infra-sound
The year 2016 was the first year the United States deployed ocean wind turbines which coincide with the whale beachings. Construction of the Block Island, Rhode Island ocean wind turbine started in January of 2016. The construction took place underwater placing miles of electric cables. Construction noise underwater increases.Electric cables generate EMF. Sources of ELF-EMFs include power lines, electrical wiring, and ocean wind turbine construction. The increase in the Whale deaths began when the construction of the Rhode Island ocean wind turbines began,,, by Frank Haggerty >click to read< 17:15
VOTE THEM OUT! Mass. delegation pushing to advance Vineyard Wind
Members of Congress have become involved in trying to move Vineyard Wind forward, a top Baker administration official said Tuesday, as lobbying intensifies to advance what state officials hope will be the nation’s first commercial-scale offshore wind project. Energy and Environmental Affairs Undersecretary Patrick Woodcock told members of the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center Board Tuesday about the involvement of members of Congress since the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management indicated it would not decide on a key project approval this month, as anticipated. >click to read< 10:37
Offshore Wind: Cuomo’s incredible wind-power pander
Flanked by former veep and climate-crusader Al Gore, Gov. Andrew Cuomo last week signed a wide-ranging “climate-action” bill. He also announced that New Yorkers would subsidize construction of more than 200 wind turbines off New York City and Long Island — one of the biggest efforts of its kind in the United States — all in the name of reducing the state’s carbon emissions to “net zero” in about 30 years. Amid what he described as the “chaos of political pandering and hyperbole” surrounding the issue of climate change, Cuomo portrayed his plan as grounded in “facts, data and evidence.” >click to read<09:14
Baker, Vineyard Wind mum on Feds’ project guidance – Why Vineyard Wind should’nt proceed without answers
The federal government has offered new “guidance” on the Vineyard Wind offshore wind project, Gov. Charlie Baker said, but neither the governor’s team nor project officials will talk about it. The Baker administration chose Vineyard Wind in May 2018 for the state’s first commercial-scale offshore wind effort under a 2016 clean energy law and state officials are counting on the project,, On Wednesday, a Baker spokesman declined to comment when asked about the nature of the project guidance. >Click to read< 16:28 Offshore wind should not go forward until there are answers – Val Oliver – BOEM assures us that Vineyard Wind’s self-imposed, mitigation efforts will protect the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whales in their Dynamic Management Area and important migratory path. But Vineyard Wind is going to be allowed to “self- monitor, self-restrict, and self- report” without any state or federal oversight or enforcement.>click to read<
Vineyard Wind project lands in rough waters
The project, jointly owned by Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, had seemed to be gathering permits the way a kid gathers shells on the beach. One after another, the developer added them to the bucket. Then the snag: The Edgartown Conservation Commission on Wednesday denied an underwater cable route off the town’s coastline, citing the potential disturbance to marine habitats and other conflicts. (Local fishermen weren’t happy, either.) On Friday, Vineyard Wind vowed to get a “superseding order” from the state Department of Environmental Protection – a more sympathetic venue – that would overturn the commission vote. More trouble lurks: Vineyard Wind also disclosed that the US Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management would not issue a crucial permit, as expected, this week,,, >click to read<10:43
Developer: We won’t pursue wind farm in waters off Hamptons
The developer of one of the largest of three proposed wind farms contemplated for the waters off the Hamptons has withdrawn its tentative plan in favor of sites to the west, and is urging the federal government to restrict turbines from East End waters, according to the Germany-based developer’s top U.S. official.,, Bill White, managing director of East Wind LLC, a subsidiary of EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG, said Friday the decision to withdraw and recommend against development off the Hamptons was primarily related to concerns about impacts on fishing. >click to read<10:08
Vineyard Wind dealt blows on two fronts: Edgartown commission rejects cables; feds delay EIS
… Meanwhile, federal officials have also put the project’s approval and overall timeline into jeopardy. According to a statement posted on Vineyard Wind’s website, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is not yet ready to issue a final environmental impact statement (EIS) for the project. A decision had been expected Friday to clear the way for construction to begin by the end of 2019 on the 84-turbine wind farm.,,, To this point, Vineyard Wind has cruised along beating out two other offshore wind projects with leases south of Martha’s Vineyard. But, more recently, the project has received considerably more pushback as the extent of the project became clear to fishermen and others. >click to read< 12:45
Vineyard Wind suffers cable defeat
The Edgartown conservation commission, in a 5-1 vote, has denied a permit for cables that would pass through the Muskeget Channel.,,, The cables had been approved by the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, but at the Edgartown hearings fishermen pushed back strongly against them saying that the cables might have detrimental marine effects. Vineyard Wind and their consultants, Epsilon, appeared stunned after the vote. No one from the contingent would comment on the decision. >click to read< 22:06
Todays Offshore Wind Farm Propaganda (from a real pro) – NOIA: VA Offshore Wind is a Win for Americans
NOIA President Randall Luthi issued the following statement after Dominion Energy and its partner Ørsted began construction of the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) Project: “This research project will also help all regulators and other ocean users understand,,, >click to read< Its sickening, but, who is this guy? Well connected, and we’ll see a lot of present and former insiders drifting in for the big feed at the Wind Farm Trough. >click to read<11:51
Vote these people out. US Extends Offshore Wind Tax Credit
The Offshore Wind Incentives for New Development Act introduced by Senators Markey (D-MA), Whitehouse (D-RI), and Congressman Jim Langevin (RI-02), as well as the Incentivizing Offshore Wind Power Act introduced by Senators Carper (D-DE) and Collins (R-ME) would extend the federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) at 30 percent of the project’s total value for six years and eight years respectively. >click to read< 14:55
Fishermen face uphill battle in lawsuit over New York wind site
Fishermen and the city of New Bedford are facing an uphill battle in their fight against a New York offshore wind location after losing a lawsuit in September. Attorney David Frulla, who represents the Fisheries Survival Fund and other plaintiffs in the case, said he was disappointed at the court decision but has not given up. “I just don’t think the judge understood that these leases aren’t theoretical, that they actually confer rights,” he said. >click to read< 09:46
Maine Governor Mills signs wind bill, announces plans to advance offshore energy
Stalled efforts to test a floating wind farm off the Maine coast got back on track Wednesday after Gov. Janet Mills signed legislation directing the Public Utilities Commission to approve the contract for Maine Aqua Ventus, a first-of-its-kind wind project in the United States.,,, Mills also announced two collaborative efforts to put the state back in the game for offshore wind energy research.,,, Mills also announced that she will create the Maine Offshore Wind Initiative. The state-based program will identify opportunities for offshore wind development in the Gulf of Maine,,, will promote compatibility between potential future uses and existing uses, such as Maine’s commercial fishing and maritime industries. >click to read<08:27
Mills signs $8 billion budget, bills including Green New Deal, plastic bag ban – >click to read<
Renewables ‘Transition’ Terminated: With Their Subsidies Slashed, the Honeymoon for Wind & Solar is Over
Like a bride jilted at the altar, the wind and solar ‘industries’ are moaning about what could have been.,,, It was, of course, a ‘green’ wet dream. Now, reality has started to bite. With an inevitability, all of its own. For some strange reason, the places that led the charge with mandates, targets and massive subsidies to wind and solar, all appear to be the first to unwind those very same policies – simply because they were never sustainable, in the first place. Faced with rocketing power prices and grids on the brink of collapse, European states have slashed subsidies and are building new coal-fired plants and refurbishing old ones. >click to read<14:01
After pause, Maine may have missed the boat on offshore wind
Six months ago, a Norwegian company called Equinor submitted a winning bid of $135 million to lease a patch of ocean bottom off Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts from the federal government. It won a similar lease off New Jersey in 2016. Last winter the company submitted a third bid, off New York, and this summer is expected to bid on another round of leases off Massachusetts. Why all the investment activity? The Northeast coast of the United States could become a second hub for commercial-scale offshore wind power, an Equinor vice president explained, one that could rival its position in the United Kingdom.>click to read<10:55
Chill Wind Of Reality Blows Through The Green Energy Lobby
In recent weeks, some observers of the energy scene have been wondering if the long honeymoon of the renewables industry might finally have come to an end.,,, This is all very different to a couple of years ago when the wind industry and newspapers started shouting, in unison, that a new era of offshore wind was on the way. While a few spoilsports pointed out that there was almost certainly less to these announcements than met the eye, and wondered how exactly these alleged cost savings were to be achieved, the hype continued unabated. ,,, All this means that many environmentalists have pinned their hopes on offshore wind. There’s plenty of space out at sea, there are no neighbors to object, and the industry is saying that prices are going to drop through the floor. >click to read<13:08
Will there be ENRON like brown-outs? Mass. to double offshore wind procurements
The Baker administration is pushing ahead with plans to double the procurement of offshore wind power over the next several years, a move that will increase wind’s share of the state’s energy portfolio to 30 percent while locking Massachusetts into long-term contracts for nearly two thirds of its electricity. >click to read< (note), In the meantime, Pilgrim was quietly closed yesterday while Cape Cod Commission urged to focus on emissions reduction10:45
Wind farm critics step up efforts – Citizens for the Preservation of Wainscott launch website, wainscott.org
In the Town of East Hampton’s easternmost hamlet, Montauk commercial fishermen say the proposed South Fork Wind Farm may destroy their livelihood, citing potential disruptions to fish populations and migration patterns as well as the danger to navigation represented by its 15 turbines, each of them hundreds of feet tall and driven deep into the ocean floor. At the other end of the town, many Wainscott residents are upset that Orsted U.S. Offshore Wind has identified the ocean beach at the end of Beach Lane as the preferred site to land the wind farm’s export cable. A group called Citizens for the Preservation of Wainscott has launched a website, wainscott.org, which lays out a mission statement, action plan, and petition opposing the site. >click to read<15:52
