The development of renewable energy, whether from wind turbines or solar panels, is important for long-term US energy needs. Nature provides an abundant amount of sun and wind, and much of America's national energy debate revolves around developing such resources. Some environmentalists, many people in the energy industries feel, lean a bit too far towards renewable energy as the solution to all our problems.
It was surprising then when we received a press release the other day from an environmental group—the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound—opposing a wind energy project. That raised our eyebrows and triggered a little detective work into the current state of the wind energy business off Massachusetts.
Offshore wind farm
A few years ago, Cape Wind Associates LLC, Boston, was formed to develop electric power generation off Cape Cod using wind turbines. The plan is to build a wind farm of 170 wind turbines spaced 1/2 and 1/3 mile apart on Horseshoe Shoal, about 5 miles off the southern coast of Cape Cod. The turbines would be arranged in a grid pattern, roughly 5 miles by 5 miles. Peak daily output would be about 400 Mw, enough to power Cape Cod and surrounding islands. The planners hope to be in business by 2005.
The wind turbine structures would be tall. At the blade tip, each tower would be 426 ft high. On clear days they would be visible from shore.
Turbine noise
Most of us have heard about large wind turbines being noisy. That's why many of them are in the deserts, away from large population centers.
It is this noise side effect, along with land-use questions, that is leading wind energy proponents to move the turbines out to sea. And Nantucket Sound is a likely place to put them, because the winds are favorable and the project promises abundant, fairly cheap, reliable energy for the area.
One would think that would make everybody happy. However, that is not the case.
The real problem
A bill now in Congress, named for Barbara Cubin (R-Wyo.), chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources, would allow offshore renewable energy development. The US Army Corps of Engineers feels the proposed Nantucket Sound project would not impact navigation or harm the maritime environment, so developers received a permit in August from the corps to construct a 200 ft high monitoring station on Horseshoe Shoal.
Equipment at the station will include instruments to measure wind speed and direction, air temperature, pressure, currents, wave heights, tides, and water temperature. These are all things that need to be checked before final plans can be set for construction of the wind farm.
Opponents of the project point out what they see as dangers in the project. The alliance says the towers would be a serious visual blight on one of America's most scenic maritime vistas. They claim the electric power is not needed because there is plenty of it locally now; much of it would be transmitted outside the Cape Cod area. Also, the group claims the damage to the environment would not be worth the few dozen permanent jobs created in the community. And, they repeatedly point out in their literature, "This is a for-profit venture."
In the May 15 Cape Cod Times, writer John Leaning says, "The Nantucket Sound wind farm proposal could be forced to clear new federal regulations under a proposal made recently by US Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.). Kennedy, the state's senior senator, whose family estate would be within view of the wind turbines, attached an amendment to the administration's energy bill, instructing the National Academy of Science to do a 2 year study of renewable energy projects for the Department of (the) Interior."
In October, Massachusetts Atty. Gen. Thomas F. Reilly called for a halt to new facilities in Nantucket Sound until legal authority could be determined and congressional review undertaken.
Polls show residents generally in favor of the project, however, so opponents were forced to pull out the atomic bomb of all environmental discussions.
In its news release dated Oct. 17, the alliance stated: "The Cubin bill has been characterized by opponents as a 'land grab' by private developers who say they support offshore wind energy development but in reality are using wind energy as a stalking horse for the big oil industry with offshore interests."
