Wind energy facilities planned off coast of Rhode Island and Massachusetts
Green Oceans
1,000 or more wind turbines.
800- to 1,000-foot tall turbines, taller than any building in Boston. 12.9 miles from RI and 8.2 from MA.
1,400 square miles of ocean, 1.5 times the size of RI, will be industrialized.
[1]
Pile driving into the seabed, heavy diesel vessel traffic, sediment plumes, and detonations of ordinances will harm whales, kill plankton, and reduce fishery stocks.
“No measurable influence on climate change” will result from these projects, according to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM).
CO₂ emissions from construction front loads the carbon cost. None of the projects’ websites claim they will help reduce CO2 emissions or help climate change.
Wind power without battery storage requires 100% backup and will therefore never reduce our dependency on fossil fuels.
SF₆, a greenhouse gas 23,500 times more potent than carbon dioxide, and millions of gallons of oil and lubricants are contained on site and may leak.
Biodiversity loss threatens human health and contributes to climate change. One project alone will imperil fourteen endangered species.
Significant, irreversible environmental damage to the marine ecosystem will result. 11-14
Cod, squid, tuna, and shellfish fisheries will all suffer.
Major Longterm adverse impacts on commercial fishing will result from the developments according to the Final Environmental Impact assessment for Revolution Wind.
The North Atlantic right whale may become extinct. Sean Hayes, division chief of NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center, stated that “impacts from installed and operating turbines cannot be mitigated.”
More than 700,000 marine mammals may be harmed. NOAA has or is in the process of granting offshore wind companies permission to harm and/or disturb 716,978 marine mammals, including more than 23,000 whales.
EMFs and temperature elevations from the high-voltage cables and substations will adversely affect marine animals from plankton to apex predators.
410+ whales have died along the eastern seaboard since 2016, when offshore wind companies began their seismic surveys in the region.
Microplastics will contaminate the marine food web from blade erosion.
Forever chemicals (PFOAs), toxic metals and bisphenols (BPAs) will be resuspended by jet plowing for the cable installations. No sediment samples have been tested for PFOAs.
Major adverse impact on employment according to the Revolution Wind Final Environmental Impact statement.
Decommissioning has not been factored into either total expense or environmental impact and may cost 70% of the installation price.
Reduced fishing, tourism, property values, and elevated electricity costs will decrease state tax revenues and cause economic hardship while foreign-owned wind companies will profit (Ørsted, Avangrid, Equinor, Shell).
Wind developers have donated $millions to environmental groups, universities, and research organizations.
1,000 turbines will cost $50 billion. US taxpayers are currently expected to shoulder 30% of this cost.
Destruction of natural beauty in our public spaces. These 873-1000 foot structures will be visible from nearly every public beach in RI.
Hidden impacts and costs. The developers of Revolution Wind will not allow the public to access 25 out of 51 appendices, including the emergency response plans.
Navigation safety and radar will be compromised. The projects will deter search and rescue operations within the 1,400 square miles of development.
Download this one-page fact sheet [2].
(Download full paper with references [3].)
Green Oceans [4]: Protecting the ocean and preventing the industrialization of our coastal waters
To contact us: info@green-oceans.org [5]
To donate: https://green-oceans.org/donate [6]
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/alerts/2023/10/23/wind-energy-facilities-planned-off-coast-of-rhode-island-and-massachusetts/
URLs in this post:
[1] Image: https://www.wind-watch.org/alerts/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Wind_energy_leases_offshore_Massachusetts_and_Rhode_Island_2022.png
[2] Download this one-page fact sheet: https://www.wind-watch.org/alerts/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Green-Oceans-Facts-Sheet.pdf
[3] Download full paper with references: https://www.wind-watch.org/alerts/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Green-Oceans-White-Paper.pdf
[4] Green Oceans: https://green-oceans.org/
[5] info@green-oceans.org: mailto:info@green-oceans.org
[6] https://green-oceans.org/donate: https://green-oceans.org/donate