Wind Power News: Rhode Island
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
Dem senators from 4 states ask NOAA to address whale deaths
Democratic U.S. Senators from four states want federal environmental officials to address a spate of whale deaths on both coasts, urging “transparency and timeliness” in releasing information about whale deaths and their causes. The call late Tuesday by New Jersey Sens. Robert Menendez and Cory Booker; Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, and Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse for action by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration marked the first large-scale request for action by Democratic federal lawmakers . . . Complete story »
‘Take’ authorizations prove NOAA is lying about whale deaths
The marine science community knows this much for certain: The high-resolution geophysical (HRG) surveys used to site offshore wind turbines and transmission cabling causes harm and mortality to marine mammals. They know the intense noise of pounding thousands of monopiles deep into the seabed, along with an exponential increase of vessel traffic during construction and for maintenance afterwards will do the same—disturb, injure, and kill marine life. Here’s the proof: As of mid-March 2023, NOAA Fisheries has handed out 15 . . . Complete story »
Another big array of offshore turbines proposed for RI
The joint venture developing the first big offshore wind farm for Rhode Island is proposing to build a second, even larger project to supply power to the state. The partnership between Danish offshore wind developer Ørsted and New England utility Eversource has submitted a proposal for what they’re calling Revolution Wind 2, an 884-megawatt wind farm that would eclipse in size Revolution Wind, the 704-megawatt project they could soon start building in the vicinity of Rhode Island Sound. The companies . . . Complete story »
No measurable influence on climate change
Officially, offshore wind developers anticipate their projects will “have no measurable influence on climate change.” Knowing this, they offer a different rationale. In the “purpose and need” section of the draft environmental impact statement for Revolution Wind, Ørsted justifies the offshore wind project based on its ability to fulfill Rhode Island’s mandate for “renewable” energy. Meeting a political mandate differs rather significantly from combating climate change. Ørsted seems to understand this difference, but the public may not. First, although offshore . . . Complete story »
A portrait of offshore wind companies
First, we would like to reiterate that we recognize the threat of climate change and understand the urgency to drastically reduce carbon emissions. We cannot wait for the perfect solution; yet, nor should we hastily embrace a counterproductive one. Accusing those who question the wisdom of offshore wind farms with NIMBYism or allegiance to the fossil fuel industry silences valid concerns. Caring about our ocean aligns with a desire to address climate change. The ocean produces more oxygen than all . . . Complete story »
Whales are dying — Is there a link to offshore wind?
Today, as with many other issues, our country has politicized whale deaths. With each new whale stranding, politics intervenes to either whitewash, weaponize, or silence the facts. The facts, however, stand. With yet another dead humpback whale spotted off the coast of southern New Jersey, we are witnessing an alarming number of recent whale deaths. At least nine humpback whales have died along the coast of New York and New Jersey since December. During this same period, offshore wind companies . . . Complete story »
Questioning the wisdom of offshore wind
On April 20, 2010, the oil rig, Deepwater Horizon, exploded in the Gulf of Mexico, releasing millions of barrels of oil into pristine ocean waters. Desperate to contain the spill, the U.S. government applied unprecedented amounts of chemical dispersants. While the dispersants helped diffuse the petroleum, they significantly magnified (52x) the toxicity of the spill, killing millions of additional fish and other wildlife. Such is the law of unintended consequences. After years of inaction, the U.S. is now aggressively intervening . . . Complete story »
Wind farm utility causing onshore problems
New England has regional noise/vibration problems since the Block Island Wind Farm started. Indeed, one could note, regional wind turbines no longer typify “green energy.” In addition to air storage batteries being secretly installed on Beavertail in Jamestown to facilitate retention of unpredictable wind power, the regional power grid has been secretly raised to a higher power level to capture more irregular wind power for investors. However, that higher grid power has caused widespread environmental pressure, including water and sewer . . . Complete story »
US ignored own scientists’ warning in backing Atlantic wind farm
US government scientists warned federal regulators the South Fork offshore wind farm near the Rhode Island coast threatened the Southern New England Cod, a species so ingrained in regional lore that a wooden carving of it hangs in the Massachusetts state house. The Interior Department approved the project anyway. The warnings were delivered in unpublished correspondence weeks before Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management authorized the 12-turbine South Fork plan in November 2021. And they serve to underscore the potential . . . Complete story »
How a 100-turbine wind farm is about to change Newport County’s oceanfront views
Within five years, Rhode Island’s horizon will be unmistakably altered to any beachgoer, fisherman or waterfront homeowner gazing out to sea, and the coastal Atlantic from Martha’s Vineyard to Long Island will be dotted with wind turbines arranged in orderly grids like trees in an orchard. They will appear small in perspective, and tower in reality over the men and women who go out on boats to service them, the blades rotating to the height of an 80-story building, 873 . . . Complete story »
