Saving Seafood

NEW YORK: Stonington fishermen say wind farm developer not responding to their concerns

October 23, 2019 — Local fishermen say they’ve been waiting for months for Ørsted to respond to a host of concerns they’ve presented  about a proposed 75-turbine wind farm about a dozen miles southwest of Martha’s Vineyard.

Joe Gilbert, who has a fleet of four commercial boats based at the Stonington Town Dock, said he met with John O’Keefe, head of marine operations for Ørsted, in March to discuss the “vast” concerns that he and other fishermen have ranging from potential environmental impacts to spacing in between turbines. The meeting, which lasted several hours, was productive with O’Keefe taking copious notes, Gilbert said.

“I thought it was the beginning of an open dialogue between the wind developer and the fishermen,” Gilbert said. “I understand we have to try and coexist, and these folks came down wanting to know what our issues were to hopefully work with us so we would all be good neighbors.”

Gilbert said he never heard back from O’Keefe about how Ørsted plans to address the issues, even after following up multiple times with him and other company officials. Eventually, he and a group of Stonington fishermen were offered a meeting in September with Matthew Morrissey, Ørsted’s head of New England markets.

They reiterated their concerns, including those that required more immediate attention, such as a close call earlier in the year between a survey vessel and a fishing vessel in the waters south of Martha’s Vineyard. Gilbert said the fishing vessel tried to communicate with the survey vessel to determine right of way, but the operators on the bridge of the survey vessel, which operates under the Marshall Islands flag, did not speak English.

Morrissey “promised a two-day response” to address their concerns, Gilbert said, but he and the others still haven’t heard back.

Read the full story at The Day

German utility sets sights on New York Bight offshore wind

October 23, 2019 — The EnBW Group, a German utility company and offshore wind developer, is preparing to bid on an anticipated next round of federal energy leases in the New York Bight, and joined a partnership with commercial fishing advocates.

Beth Casoni, executive director of the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association, joined EnBW North America as its fisheries liaison, the company announced Wednesday.

Casoni is well known in the Northeast industry, where she has served on the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Team, seafood marketing boards, and herring advisory panels to the New England Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.

Her job is to get fishermen’s input “on offshore wind related issues and developments and conveying to them timely information about EnBW North America’s offshore wind planning and future on-water activities,” according to a statement from the company. “Among other duties, Casoni will inform and develop best management practices and strategies that support the coexistence off offshore wind and fishing.”

Read the full story at National Fisherman

SOUTH CAROLINA: Clemson bet big on the future of renewable energy. Years later, SC still won’t embrace it.

October 11, 2019 — Dead air. That’s the vibe around the wind power industry in South Carolina that nearly a decade ago saw $100 million invested by public and private sources.

Progress is as flat as the long turbine blade displayed resting on the ground outside Clemson University’s $98 million Energy Innovation Center on the former Navy base in North Charleston.

It hosts one of the largest wind simulators in the world — designed to test huge wind turbines.

The state-of-the-art facility was built in 2013 with $45 million in federal grants along with $53 million in private and state contributions. The intent was to provide a hub for what was widely considered an emerging industry in the state.

That hasn’t happened.

“It’s not living up to the expectations we had,” said state Sen. Larry Grooms, R-Bonneau, an early champion of the project. “Unless there’s a market for wind energy, there’s no market for wind turbines and there’s not much to do over in North Charleston.”

Read the full story at The Post and Courier

ROSA Executive Director Position Announcement

October 9, 2019 — The following was released by the Responsible Offshore Science Alliance:

The Responsible Offshore Science Alliance (ROSA) seeks a strong leader with deep knowledge of marine resource science and management and excellent administrative and organizational skills to serve as its first Executive Director. ROSA is a new collaborative effort involving the fishing and offshore wind energy industries, federal and state government partners, and the ocean science community. Its goal is “To provide for and advance regional research and monitoring of fisheries and offshore wind interactions in federal waters through collaboration and cooperation in order to: (1) Increase salient and credible data on fisheries and wind development; and (2) Increase the understanding of the effects of wind energy development on fisheries and the ocean ecosystems on which they depend.”

The application and interview process will be conducted in October and November 2019 with a target decision date of November 22, 2019 and a target start date of the successful candidate in December 1, 2019. The position’s location is flexible but must be within the Northeast or Mid-Atlantic regions of the U.S.A. ROSA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation.

Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Executive Director (ED) will have overall strategic, financial and operational responsibility for ROSA’s implementation, growth, staff, programs, and execution of its mission. She or he will initially organize the Executive Council and other committees and in concern with them, refine ROSA’s institutional governance and operations structure.

Read the full release here

STUDY: Northeast clean energy plans inadequate to meet climate goals

October 8, 2019 — New England’s six states are falling short of the low-carbon energy deployment needed to reach their shared 2050 climate goals, according to a new analysis from the Brattle Group.

By midcentury, every state in New England aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80% over 1990 levels.

At the behest of the Coalition for Community Solar Access, a solar trade association, Brattle looked late last month at how much clean energy would be needed to meet those goals, if the region engaged in a mass switch from fossil fuel sources to electricity.

Demand for electricity would roughly double by 2050, despite efficiency measures — about the same amount as for the nation at large, if it were to follow a similar path, the consultancy said.

To supply that power, about four to eight times more renewables would need to come online annually, across the 2020s, than what is currently planned for the region.

Currently, planned low-carbon generation would reach about 830 megawatts of power annually through 2030. That compares with the 4 to 7 gigawatts per year on average needed through 2050 to meet the climate targets.

Read the full story at Energy News Network

Groups say seismic blasts are hurting belugas in Cook Inlet

October 8, 2019 — Two conservation groups want the federal government to stop allowing seismic surveying in Cook Inlet. The Cook Inletkeeper and Center for Biological Diversity said the noise is harming beluga whales.

The survey work by Hilcorp involves blasting high pressure seismic airguns into the water. The sound waves that result help map the ocean floor and point to areas where oil and gas finds are likely.

Bob Shavelson, with the Cook Inletkeeper, said studies show loud noises can harm Cook Inlet beluga whales, which are considered highly endangered. He’s also concerned about the impacts on other creatures that inhabit the area where Hilcorp is testing.

“Imagine if a heavy metal band set up under your bedroom window,” Shavelson said. “How that would be if they were pounding 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for a couple months on end. You would go nuts.”

Read the full story at KTVA

NEW YORK: Long Island Offshore Wind Farm Moves Forward, Despite Local Opposition

October 4, 2019 — New York inches closer to its first offshore wind farm as developers reached a lease option agreement with a Montauk fishing cooperative.

Orsted, the Denmark-based developer, announced the agreement to build an operations and maintenance facility for the South Fork Wind Farm on property owned by Inlet Seafood in Montauk.

The wind farm’s employees will use the facility to dock their vessels and transfer personnel to and from the turbines.

Dave Aripotch is a commercial fisherman and a co-owner of Inlet Seafood. His wife, Bonnie Brady, is with the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association. Brady says Aripotch didn’t sign the agreement and will refuse any profits from it.

Read the full story at WSHU

Skyscrapers in the sea: Massive wind turbines planned off Delaware coast

October 3, 2019 — The latest plans to harness the power of the wind will feature 853-foot-tall turbines installed east of Delaware’s beaches.

The Danish company Ørsted announced last month that it would install the world’s largest offshore wind turbines in federal water 15 to 20 miles off Delaware’s coast. Built by GE, the Haliade X-12 turbines would stand 853 feet tall in the Skipjack Wind Farm east of the state’s southern beaches. The turbine’s three blades are each longer than a football field.

“We look forward to introducing the next-generation offshore wind turbine to the market,” Ørsted Offshore CEO Martin Neubert said in a statement. Pending full regulatory approval, the turbines are set to be up and running by 2022. The 10 turbines are expected to generate 120 MW of power. Even though the turbines will be built off the Delaware coast, Ørsted has an agreement to sell the power they produce to Maryland.

Read the full story at WHYY

NEW YORK: Orsted Wind Plans Montauk Operations Site

October 3, 2019 — An operations and maintenance facility for the proposed South Fork Wind Farm will be sited adjacent to Inlet Seafood, just inside Montauk Harbor, the wind farm’s developers announced last week. But whether the facility represents a meeting of the minds or merely a business arrangement depends on whom you ask.

Orsted U.S. Offshore Wind and Eversource, partners in the 15-turbine installation that would be constructed approximately 35 miles off Montauk, announced on Sept. 25 that they had reached a lease option agreement with Inlet Seafood to locate the facility adjacent to the latter’s commercial fishing and packing operation off East Lake Drive.

Orsted-Eversource crew transfer vessels will be based at Inlet Seafood and used to transport the wind farm’s maintenance crew to and from the wind farm, the developers said. The facility is being designed to ensure that the vessels do not impact the existing commercial fishing fleet or packing operations there, the Sept. 25 announcement said.

“We are pleased to be locating an operations and maintenance facility in Montauk to service our South Fork Wind Farm and bring additional jobs to the area,” Thomas Brostrom, chief executive officer of Orsted U.S. Offshore Wind and President of Orsted North America, said in the Sept. 25 announcement.

Read the full story at The East Hampton Star