Citizens oppose Pa. Lake Erie wind turbine bill – find out why 

Now that summer is upon us, we are looking forward to the many activities that take place on Lake Erie. Unfortunately, we believe these pristine shores and waters are in jeopardy thanks to Pennsylvania House Bill 254, introduced by Rep. Bob Merski, of Erie, and endorsed by Reps. Pat Harkins, of Erie, and Ryan Bizzarro, of Millcreek Township, which paves the way for offshore energy development, including the installation of wind turbines in Lake Erie.

The Clean Water Act of 1972 established the basic framework for protecting our water resources by regulating the release of pollutants to lakes, rivers, streams and wetlands. Lake Erie and its contributing tributaries such as the Cuyahoga River are cleaner than ever. Why risk contaminating those waters with wind turbines filled with hundreds of gallons of lubricants which must be replaced periodically?
Pat Riley Hersch

Lake Erie is the source of drinking water for 11 million people, including Erieites. We cannot jeopardize our pure water for what is, in our view, at best a grand experiment and green energy money grab. This would be one of the first installations of wind turbines in fresh water anywhere.

Fifteen years ago, a company called Lake Erie Energy Development Corp., or LEEDCo, planned a six-turbine installation in Lake Erie called Icebreaker Wind in waters off Cleveland. The U.S. Department of Energy generously pledged up to $50 million in grants if LEEDCo met certain milestones. LEEDCo partnered with Fred. Olsen Renewables from Norway and an economic impact study at one point suggested that Lake Erie could accommodate 1,200 turbines. After years of planning and consulting with experts, Icebreaker Wind was recently scrapped because of a lack of progress and because it was “financially untenable.” Media reports indicate LEEDCo is in the process of refunding $37 million to the U.S. Department of Energy. Despite the transparency laws and numerous phone calls, we could never find out exactly how much taxpayer money went out the door – for a project that came to nothing. Between 2010 and 2020, LEEDCo reported in tax returns a total of $3.7 million paid in executive compensation – for nothing, as far as far we are concerned.

Here are some unanswered questions that should have been addressed at an open hearing before HB 254 was submitted:

1. Were preliminary environmental studies done before this bill was voted on? Were studies done on bird strikes and wildlife habitat destruction? Were organized fishing groups consulted? (Evidently not. Many fishing groups in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York oppose turbines in Lake Erie.)

2. Where will turbines be placed? LEEDCo had proposed turbines with 206-foot blades. Newer turbines, such as those being built off the coast of Massachusetts, are 853 feet high with blades 321 feet long. To avoid collisions, turbines are adorned with flashing red lights.

3. How many cable installations and transfer stations will be built on the shores of Lake Erie and be deemed off-limits to swimmers, hikers, fishermen and boaters? How will tourism be affected?
In this simulated image previously provided by Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation, six proposed wind turbines are seen off the coast of Lake Erie near Cleveland. LEEDCo said that at 8 miles away, if a person stood on the shore and held out their arm, each turbine would appear no longer than half a thumbnail. The turbines would have had a 272-foot hub with 206-foot blades. The Ohio project has been called off, but new Pennsylvania legislation enabling offshore energy development in Lake Erie was sponsored by Rep. Bob Merski, of Erie, D-2nd Dist., and passed in the House in April

4. Are there plans for decommissioning and removing turbines when they no longer work, usually after 20 years? Or will Pennsylvanians be left with a lake full of ecojunk?

We believe that Rep. Merski’s assertion that wind turbines in Lake Erie will be a source of jobs in the Erie region is inaccurate. Most turbine parts are manufactured in China. Specially trained turbine installers who do the dangerous job of working on structures that are hundreds of feet tall and located in a storm-prone lake return to their home states when the job is done. All that is required on a permanent basis is a few low-paying maintenance jobs.

Microplastics are a serious environmental and health issue. Lake Erie has the second highest amount of plastic particles out of all the Great Lakes. These microplastics can disrupt natural food webs and even reduce the quality, size, and reproductive capabilities of the local fish we eat.
Vertical perspective line of ocean windmills with dark water and sky

Blade erosion is one of the reasons turbine blades are piling up as waste. They must be replaced as uneven wear causes the machine to become unbalanced as it spins and vibrates. Think of an unbalanced centrifuge. Vibrating turbines are noisier and eventually the stress can lead to fractures and mechanical failure.

Turbine blades’ surfaces are epoxy- and PFAS-based. Epoxy is 40% Bisphenol A (BPA), an endocrine disruptor and neurotoxin. PFAS belong to the family of “forever chemicals” that don’t break down in the environment and are highly toxic. PFAS products are used as a protective coating which in turn sheds after a couple of years. Sanding of blades in preparation of repair ensures more particle release, even finer in size and dispersed by air currents, all, we fear, ending up in the lake, of course, and in the food chain, and on your dinner plate.

When people justify wind turbines by saying fiberglass boats have the same coatings, think of the difference in size, speed and weather exposure. Turbine blade edges are moving through air at 160 mph all year through all types of weather and objects – ice, rain, snow, flying creatures. It is like comparing sandblasting to a car wash, in our view.

Lake Erie is not up for grabs by any developer for profit because of the Pennsylvania Constitution’s Environmental Rights Amendment, which guarantees citizen dominion over Lake Erie.

This amendment states: “The people have a right to clean air, pure water.” In its industrial past, Erie’s manufacturing companies dumped tons of chemical waste into Lake Erie. These wastes lie safely undisturbed under layers of sand and silt. Installation of wind turbines would require extensive trenching for electric cables and the ensuing turbine vibration would stir up these toxic settlings. Erie County’s drinking water comes from intake pipes 3 miles out. We do not believe this area should be disturbed.

The amendment continues: “and to the preservation of the natural scenic, historic, and esthetic values of the environment.” We think industrial turbines in Lake Erie would be a visual blight. Studies have shown that some beachgoers would avoid beaches with visible turbines. The beautiful Lake Erie sunsets and lake vistas should not be compromised by machinery and red strobe lights.

Erie was once the top commercial and fishing center on the Great Lakes. More than 100 shipwrecks lie on the lake floor in the 52 miles between New York and Ohio. These great historical resources should not be subject to destruction by the installation of turbines. Instead, state Reps. Merski, Harkins, and Bizzarro should focus their attention on Erie County’s 2015 petition to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to designate the Pennsylvania portion of Lake Erie as a National Marine Sanctuary, which would protect the lake’s “cultural and historical artifacts” and expand tourism and educational opportunities.

As the amendment states, “Pennsylvania’s public natural resources are the common property of all the people…As trustee of these resources, the commonwealth shall conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all the people.”

Submitted by Pat Riley Hersch of Erie. Also contributing to this piece were Sharon Trembath of Citizens Against Wind Turbines in Lake Erie (CAWTILE) and Tom Wasielewski of CAWTILE and coordinator of the Conneaut, Ohio, Hawk Watch. With information from Great Lakes Wind Truth, CAWTILE, Lake Erie Foundation, and National Wind Watch.