Saving Seafood

BILL STRAUS: Fishing industry could be endangered by planned wind turbines

January 4, 2019 — Whatever the future for large scale off-shore wind farms in New England, New Bedford and its first in the nation fishing industry will feel the effects. Renewable energy from sources which include off-shore wind, are an undeniable part of our future. It’s a fair question though whether commercial fishing as it now exists in southern New England, will survive the installation of the largest and most extensive array of ocean based wind turbines in the world. The offshore wind lease areas in federal waters overlay some important fishing grounds and navigation transit areas for the commercial fishing fleet which sails from our coast.

The project furthest along in the leasing process is being pursued by Vineyard Wind, which hopes to have all its approvals by the summer of 2019 and begin construction later in the year. Critical decisions are about to made at the state and federal levels regarding the design, spacing and layout of the initial turbines which are planned for the waters near Martha’s Vineyard. This process involves the filing of reports which are public and provide opportunities for comment and reactions. The Draft Environmental Impact Report before the lead federal agency involved, BOEM, is open for public comment through Jan. 21, 2019 and there are parallel state agency filings as well. The public has a responsibility to participate in shaping the decisions that are going to be made and monitor the filings as they are announced.

It’s a lot to expect that the fishing industry alone can handle the needed public oversight. Off the Massachusetts and Rhode Island coast alone there are seven different lease areas under review totaling about 1 million acres; their ultimate design configuration will be the first test of how seriously marine resource, safety and navigation issues involving the wind towers will be handled by the government agencies involved. The first maps and plans to be approved are especially important because how those turbines are set up and reviewed by the government will likely set a precedent for how the process is run for the additional lease areas sought by other developers. In other words, there’s a lot at stake not only for the developers, but importantly, the public interest in preserving ocean habitat and the existing ocean-going economy of New England.

Read the opinion piece at the New Bedford Standard-Times

MASSACHUSETTS: Vineyard Wind, Regulators Holding Public Comment Periods in January

December 21, 2018 — Federal and state regulators are again holding public comment periods for the proposed offshore wind development off the coast of Massachusetts known as Vineyard Wind.

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has released its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) establishing a preliminary assessment of the impact of the project.

The Bureau is accepting public comment on the DEIS until January 22.

Massachusetts is engaged in its review of state portions of the project and will be accepting comment through the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Act (MEPA) review.

Read the full story at CapeCod.com

Vineyard Wind Submits Final Environmental Impact Report To Massachusetts

December 20, 2018 — Massachusetts offshore wind developer Vineyard Wind has submitted a final environmental impact report (FEIR) to the state’s Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA).

The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) recently issued a notice of availability for the project’s draft environmental impact statement (DEIS). According to the developer, both these steps move the project closer to approval of environmental permitting by state and federal officials. Endorsement of the FEIR will be the final step in the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) review process, which includes a focus on cables connecting the proposed 800 MW project in federal waters to the grid connection point in Barnstable, Mass.

BOEM prepared the DEIS as part of the agency’s review of the entire Vineyard Wind project, which will be constructed 14 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard. The report provides an analysis of potential environmental impacts associated with proposed actions as set forth in the construction and operations plan, submitted to BOEM in 2017.

According to the developer, the FEIR reflects refinements that have been made to the project, including many based on input from state agencies, the Town of Barnstable and members of the public. The MEPA office will accept public comment until Jan. 25, 2019.

Read the full story at North American Wind Power

Charlie Baker: Fishing, offshore wind coexistence is ‘something we have to deal with’

December 14, 2018 — Gov. Charlie Baker expressed confidence on Thursday that offshore wind developers and fishermen in the Northeast will find a way to co-exist.

“This is something we have to deal with on a regional basis and I believe we will,” Baker told reporters.

His comments come as Rhode Island fishermen are raising objections to the state’s Vineyard Wind project and the federal government is auctioning off more ocean real estate.

The Rhode Island Fishermen’s Advisory Board recently voted against the Vineyard Wind project in a move that could scuttle the state’s foray into offshore wind.

Baker said he’s proud that Massachusetts proved states could create an offshore program “at a rate affordable to ratepayers,” but added, “Nobody cares more about the fishing community than this administration.”

Read the full story at the Salem News

 

Vineyard Wind navigates travel lane dispute

Fishermen want wider corridors than those wind farm has backed.

December 14, 2018 — A dust-up has emerged over vessel travel lanes in the vast offshore wind area south of the Islands, with wind farm development companies at odds and fishermen giving mixed reviews.

“We support establishing transit corridors through the wind energy areas,” said Lauren Burm, a spokeswoman for Bay State Wind, which has signed a lease in the area but does not yet have a contract to sell its wind power. Although progress has been made on the corridor layout, a consensus is still needed with fishermen and with new companies that may lease remaining areas, Burm said.

Vineyard Wind, under the pressure of a tight schedule to begin construction next year of an 84-turbine wind farm, announced Monday that it supports the proposed 2-nautical-mile-wide vessel travel corridors. But the company’s 800-megawatt wind farm is northeast of any of the proposed corridors, so it may not be an issue until the company needs to expand. “We’re amenable to discussing a wider corridor,” company spokesman Scott Farmelant said.

The proposed corridors are not as wide as commercial fishermen might like.

“It’s a good starting point,” said lobsterman Lanny Dellinger, chairman of the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council Fisheries Advisory Board. But the commercial fishing industry has been pretty adamant about wanting 4 miles in width, Dellinger said. Fishermen need plenty of room to allow their large and slow-moving vessels to navigate safely in poor weather and recover safely in emergencies such as engine trouble, he said.

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times

 

Fishing industry says it doesn’t endorse Vineyard Wind’s ‘consensus plan’ for transit lanes

December 11, 2018 — The fishing industry said Vineyard Wind distorted its words on Monday.

A release by Vineyard Wind said the offshore wind company endorsed a “consensus” transit corridor plan supported by the fishing industry, but multiple people within the fishing industry told The Standard-Times they didn’t support or endorse the plan.

The consensus within the industry is a 4-mile wide transit lane. Vineyard Wind’s endorsed plan called for 2-mile wide corridors.

“It’s frustrating for the fishing because we’re coming with options even though we’re losing tremendous ground and we’re losing a lot of traditional transit (lanes),” said Meghan Lapp, a fisheries liaison for Seafreeze Ltd. “But we’re still trying to come to the table to make something work and in light of this press release, it doesn’t really seem like it’s being reciprocated.”

The model endorsed by Vineyard Wind is one developed in a September meeting in New Bedford. Eric Hansen, a New Bedford scalloper, attended the meeting and remembered the plan being thought of as a worst-case scenario for the fishing industry.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

Wind Farm Near Martha’s Vineyard In Jeopardy

December 6, 2018 — Rhode Island fishing interests, given the authority to weigh in on offshore wind projects that could damage their livelihoods, are flexing their muscles. As a result, a 94-turbine wind farm planned for waters south of Martha’s Vineyard is in serious jeopardy.

Like Deepwater Wind’s South Fork Wind farm planned off of Montauk, the Vineyard Wind project is owned by European energy companies with global wind-farm interests. Rhode Island, as part of the permitting process, asked for and was given “Federal Consistency” because even though the project originates in Massachusetts, it affects fisheries in neighboring states. New didn’t ask for the right to weigh in, even though local fishermen extensively fish that area.

On Tuesday, November 27, the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council agreed to postpone its decision to grant a “consistency certification” for Vineyard Wind until the end of January. If Rhode Island denies certification, Vineyard Wind could appeal to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

It is not clear how the latest news affects the Deepwater Wind project off of Montauk Point but it is sure to come up during the state’s review of the project. In fact, fishing industry proponents are urging New York State officials to be proactive in the review of any proposed offshore wind farm in the immediate region.

Read the full story at The Independent

BOEM to publish environmental impact statement for Vineyard Wind’s offshore wind farm

December 4, 2018 — The United States’ Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has announced that it will issue a Notice of Availability (NOA) for Vineyard Wind’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS.) The DEIS was prepared by BOEM as part of the agency’s review of Vineyard Wind’s proposed 800-MW wind farm to be constructed in federal waters south of Martha’s Vineyard and approximately 34 miles south of the Cape Cod mainland.

BOEM reported that there will be a 45-day public comment period for the DEIS, ending on January 21, 2019. The DEIS provides an analysis of potential environmental impacts associated with proposed actions as set forth in the Construction and Operations Plan (COP) for the project that Vineyard Wind submitted to BOEM in 2017.

Public input, which will include five public BOEM meetings in the region, will inform preparation of the Final Environmental Impact Statement. Full details regarding the public meetings and directions for submitting comment can be found here.

Publication of the DEIS represents the latest progress for the project as it advances through the permitting process toward the start of construction in 2019 and operations by 2021 following the award and execution of long-term contracts between Vineyard Wind and Massachusetts’ electric distribution companies. Since submitting the COP, Vineyard Wind announced that the project’s preferred cable landing will be the Town of Barnstable and both parties entered into a Host Community Agreement, stipulating additional measures to ensure protection of the Town’s watershed.

Read the full story at Windpower Energy & Development

Vineyard Wind given more time to meet fishermen’s concerns

November 28, 2018 — Rhode Island coastal regulators granted Vineyard Wind a stay in permitting proceedings on Tuesday, giving the New Bedford company another two months to reach agreement with fishermen who say they would lose access to valuable fishing grounds in the waters where 84 wind turbines would be installed.

At the request of Vineyard Wind, the Coastal Resources Management Council agreed to postpone a decision until the end of January on whether to grant what’s known as a “consistency certification” to the 800-megawatt offshore wind farm proposed in 118 square miles between Block Island and Martha’s Vineyard.

The delay will give the company more time to discuss a compensation package with fishermen and potential tweaks to the wind farm’s layout, said CEO Lars Pedersen.

“It requires more time to find the right solutions,” he said. “We recognize that it is a challenging situation.”

But representatives of the fishing industry argued against the stay.

“We’ve tried — 14 months, countless hours, countless days not at sea — and it just seems like they’re stalling,” said Newport fisherman Todd Sutton.

The decision represents a reprieve for the $2-billion proposal, which is facing headwinds after fishermen complained that the orientation and tight spacing of the turbines would make it impossible for them to safely fish in grounds rich in lobster, Jonah crab and squid. On Nov. 19, the Fishermen’s Advisory Board, which advises the CRMC on fishing issues related to offshore wind, unanimously voted to deny its support to the proposal.

Since that vote, staff in Gov. Gina Raimondo’s office have spoken with Vineyard Wind and the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the lead permitting agency for the project, but no further changes were made to the proposal.

Read the full story at the Providence Journal

Vineyard Wind Project Hit with Setbacks as Deadline Approaches

November 27, 2018 — The influx of offshore wind energy isn’t without its hiccups as developers negotiate with regulatory agencies and fishermen to get their projects approved as deadlines approach.

Vineyard Wind, the 94-turbine wind facility proposed for south of Martha’s Vineyard, was dealt a setback recently when it was denied an extension to complete a review by Rhode Island’s Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC).

The developers, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and Avangrid Renewables LLC, already received additional time and wanted a seven-week extension to settle objections from fishermen and CRMC staff. The project is under pressure to get approved so that it can meet deadlines for financing and qualify for a federal tax credit.

At issue is the layout of the project. Fishermen want wide corridors, specifically a mile or wider oriented east to west. Current plans offer two 1-mile corridors, with only one running east to west. As an alternative, Vineyard Wind proposed using larger turbines with nearly 10 megawatts of capacity, thereby reducing the number of towers to 84 and shrinking the project’s footprint.

According to Vineyard Wind, the bigger turbines would be the largest available commercially, but pose risk to the project because they haven’t received design certification.

Vineyard Wind also offered to pay the fishermen for lost income. Details of the compensation proposal would be negotiated with fishermen and would consist of funds paid to boat owners and/or programs that support the commercial fishing industry. Vineyard Wind also offered to contribute to fisheries studies of the federal wind-energy zone.

CRMC said it was open to another extension but only after good-faith efforts were made with the Fishermen’s Advisory Board (FAB), a CRMC-affiliated committee.

Read the full story at ecoRI