March 12, 2008
Massachusetts
Massachusetts
For members of the Barnstable Town Council, the proposed Nantucket Sound wind farm project could possibly be less of an issue if they had a say in its creation.
“We’re here because we feel we’re being left out of this project,” council President Janet Joakim told hearing officers at Monday’s Minerals Management Service public hearing.
Precinct 1 councilor Ann Canedy echoed the sentiment. “I feel our local government has not had a chair at the table.”
Joakim’s main concern was if an emergency occurs, Barnstable and other abutting towns would be expected to respond first. Though she said the town would be willing to respond, its resources are currently insufficient for the job.
“We haven’t got the equipment, we haven’t got the training and we haven’t got the money,” she said.
Councilor James Crocker said that the MMS had never questioned the impact an emergency at the site might have on Barnstable or other Cape towns. Crocker is a prudential committee member for the Centerville-Osterville-Marstons Mills Fire District and serves on its emergency services committee.
If something occurred, he said, “we have no protection.”
Joakim said that the Town of Barnstable would be willing to work with other towns and had already spoken with selectmen from Yarmouth about the issue. However, she said, first the MMS needs to look at the problem.
“This is an experiment,” she said. “We don’t know what it’s gonna do.”
The Town of Barnstable is on record as against the project in its currently proposed location.
Written by Heather Wysocki
11 March 2008
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2008/03/12/barnstable-town-councilors-question-wind-farms-security/