Saving Seafood

Why does the NH Energy Department want more information on offshore wind’s impacts?

December 6, 2021 — Offshore wind development in the Gulf of Maine could impact New Hampshire’s economy, environment and energy system, and the state’s new Department of Energy has released a request for proposals to find a consultant to help the state assess what those impacts could be.

Offshore wind development has produced controversy in other places. But the East Coast will likely see a major development of the renewable energy source in the coming years.

Though New Hampshire is likely years away from offshore wind deployment, Granite Staters have shown interest in its potential to create jobs and address the state’s impacts on climate change.

The Department of Energy, along with the state’s Department of Environmental Services, hosted an information session Dec. 2 on the RFP to select the consultant, drawing 25 attendees, according to NHDES. The chosen consultant will then produce an impact report. Funding for the report comes from the American Rescue Plan Act.

State Sen. David Watters, D-Dover, chair of the Commission to Study Offshore Wind and Port Development, said the report could provide information on how the development of offshore wind might impact New Hampshire’s economy, ports, fisheries and environment.

Read the full story at NH Business Review

How will offshore wind farms affect Gulf of Mexico fishing? Federal regulators want to know

December 6, 2021 — With the development of offshore wind energy in the Gulf of Mexico likely within a few years, federal regulators are beginning to assess how wind farms will affect commercial and recreational fisheries.

On Dec. 15, agencies that regulate offshore energy and fisheries will hold a workshop for the Gulf’s fishers. The input they gather will help guide the planning and permitting of wind farm lease areas, and potentially lead to mitigation for fishers affected by turbines, transmission lines and related infrastructure.

East Coast fishers are concerned that an expected boom in wind farm construction off the coasts of New England, New York and Virginia will crowd them out and make fishing more dangerous. The country’s first offshore wind farm, a five-turbine project built in Rhode Island in 2016, was small enough that it didn’t get in the way of fishing boats, but its transmission lines to the shore have snagged many fishing nets.

Read the full story at NOLA.com

Right whale coalition calls for moratorium on wind turbines to protect endangered species

November 26, 2021 — A local citizens group has announced the creation of the Save Right Whales Coalition, which is determined to stop offshore wind turbine projects that members say could harm whales.

“Any species whose numbers are this low requires that we not take any additional action that could harm these whales,” political and environmental author and activist Michael Shellenberger said of the endangered North Atlantic right whales. “Particularly given that we have an abundance of nuclear and natural gas resources that would provide a sufficient alternative to these large industrial wind turbines.”

During a Zoom teleconference last week, he said the coalition is composed of members from organizations that include Nantucket Residents Against Turbines, the national Wildlife Energy & Community Coalition, and California-based Environmental Progress (for which Shellenberger is founder and president).

The Save Right Whales Coalition is seeking a moratorium on all offshore wind projects “until further scientific research can be conducted” on their impact on the North Atlantic right whale population, Shellenberger said.

Read the full story at the Cape Cod Times

New guidelines for acoustic monitoring of sea life and wind energy projects

November 3, 2021 — Federal agencies that regulate offshore wind energy development issued a framework for designing and conducting acoustic monitoring of endangered whales and other sea life affected by building and operating wind turbine arrays.

“With a diverse suite of endangered large whale species and a multitude of other protected marine species frequenting these same waters, understanding the potential consequences of construction and operation activities is essential to advancing responsible offshore wind development,” states the paper published Oct. 27 in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, by a team led by experts with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and National Marine Fisheries Service.

Underwater microphones can now operate remotely, over long times and at distance, running non-stop to record and archive sounds of the ocean environment.

Advances in using autonomous unmanned vessels, such as submersible electric gliders and saildrones, mean researchers can set microphones on voyages across study areas, along with acoustic receivers deployed on buoys or anchored to the sea floor.

“Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) represents a newer technology that has become one of several methods of choice for monitoring trends in the presence of species, the soundscape, mitigating risk, and evaluating potential behavioral and distributional changes resulting from offshore wind activities,” the authors wrote.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

 

Will offshore wind threaten wildlife? A Duke-led team is working to find out

October 18, 2021 — A team of scientists led by Duke University researchers will set out to determine the risk offshore wind turbines could pose to birds, fish and marine mammals with the support of a U.S. Department of Energy grant.

The $7.5 million grant was awarded as federal and North Carolina officials push to scale up the offshore wind industry, with President Joe Biden setting a national goal of 30 gigawatts of wind by 2030 and N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper setting targets of 2.8 gigawatts by 2030 and 8 gigawatts by 2040.

Researchers from 15 institutions will create a tool-kit that the wind energy industry and regulators can use to figure out where wind farms should be placed and what steps should be taken to protect nearby wildlife. The Duke University grant is one of four included in the Department of Energy package.

Read the full story at the Charlotte Observer