Vineyard Wind dealt blows on two fronts: Edgartown commission rejects cables; feds delay EIS

The Edgartown conservation commission, in a 5-1 vote, has denied a permit for cables that would pass through the Muskeget Channel.

Vineyard Wind proposed to bury two 400 megawatt export cables one mile off Chappaquiddick from its proposed wind farm 15 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard to a site in Barnstable.

The cables had been approved by the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, but at the Edgartown hearings fishermen pushed back strongly against them saying that the cables might have detrimental marine effects.

Vineyard Wind and their consultants, Epsilon, appeared stunned after the vote. No one from the contingent would comment on the decision. Later, Scott Farmalent, a spokesman for the project, issued a statement: “Vineyard Wind appreciates the efforts of the Edgartown Conservation Commission and local stakeholders for its very detailed project review process, which focused on a broad range of issues associated with the work contemplated in the Muskeget Channel…”

Meanwhile, federal officials have also put the project’s approval and overall timeline into jeopardy.

According to a statement posted on Vineyard Wind’s website, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is not yet ready to issue a final environmental impact statement (EIS) for the project. A decision had been expected Friday to clear the way for construction to begin by the end of 2019 on the 84-turbine wind farm.

“We understand that, as the first commercial scale offshore wind project in the US, the Vineyard Wind project will undergo extraordinary review before receiving approvals,” Vineyard Wind posted. “As with any project of this scale and complexity, changes to the schedule are anticipated. Vineyard Wind remains resolutely committed to working with BOEM to deliver the United States’ first utility-scale wind farm and its essential benefits – an abundant supply of cost-effective clean energy combined with enormous economic and job-creation opportunities.”

To this point, Vineyard Wind has cruised along beating out two other offshore wind projects with leases south of Martha’s Vineyard. But, more recently, the project has received considerably more pushback as the extent of the project became clear to fishermen and others.

Updated with Vineyard Wind’s statement on the federal process. This story will have more updates as they become available.

Continue reading here:

https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2019/07/11/vineyard-wind-dealt-blow...

Feds throw up uncertainty for Vineyard Wind project

Project officials late Wednesday announced that they had been informed by the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) that “they are not yet prepared to issue” the final environmental impact statement (EIS) for the 800 megawatt project.

BOSTON — Federal officials are not ready to issue an approval for the Vineyard Wind offshore power project, which may affect the project’s timeline.

Project officials late Wednesday announced that they had been informed by the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) that “they are not yet prepared to issue” the final environmental impact statement (EIS) for the 800 megawatt project.

The schedule had called for a decision on the EIS by Friday, July 12. Project officials have long been planning to start construction on the 84-turbine installation in federal waters south of Martha’s Vineyard by the end of 2019, and become operational in 2021.

Asked whether federal officials had offered a new timeline for a decision on the EIS, a project official declined to comment.

“We understand that, as the first commercial scale offshore wind project in the U.S., the Vineyard Wind project will undergo extraordinary review before receiving approvals,” Vineyard Wind said in a statement on its website. “As with any project of this scale and comp

Continue reading here:

http://www.windaction.org/posts/50004-feds-throw-up-uncertainty-for...

Rhode Island Wind turbine rejected in unanimous decision  

Three years of fighting against a wind power proposal paid off for neighbors Tuesday night when the Zoning Board of Review voted unanimously to reject a 462.5-foot wind turbine off Old Smithfield Road.

The project, first submitted in late 2015 and brought back for review in March, involved installing a 1.5-megawatt wind turbine on land owned by Ruth Pacheco at 810 Old Smithfield Road. The proposal has drawn heavy criticism from neighbors who cite concerns about noise and the “shadow flicker” effect caused by the spinning blades, along with the impact on property values and quality of life.

Continue reading here:

https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2019/07/11/wind-turbine-rejected-in...

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Comment by Art Brigades on July 11, 2019 at 1:36pm

Glass half full?  If Maine is going to avoid additional wind desecration in our mountains, offshore wind will be a big reason why.

Comment by Willem Post on July 11, 2019 at 1:26pm

696-ft Tall Wind Turbines Highly Visible From Martha‘s Vineyard South Shore

 

The wind turbines would be located about 12 to 14 miles from Martha’s Vineyard south shore. The masts and rotors would be clearly visible during daytime and the aviation beacons would be clearly visible during nighttime, because the 9.5 MW turbines would be about 187 meter tall, or 617.1 ft, plus about 79 ft for the above-water platform = 696 ft above water at the tip of the blade.

 

https://nawindpower.com/mhi-vestas-launches-v164-9-5-mw-offshore-wi...

https://nawindpower.com/mhi-vestas-gets-important-go-ahead-for-9-5-...

https://nawindpower.com/vineyard-wind-goes-with-mhi-vestas-turbines

 

Here is a research report of daytime and nighttime visibility of wind turbines that are about 3 to 4 MW and about 500 ft tall. See URL with photos.

http://visualimpact.anl.gov/offshorevitd/docs/OffshoreVITD.pdf

 

“Study objectives included identifying the maximum distances the facilities could be seen in both daytime and nighttime views and assessing the effect of distance on visual contrasts associated with the facilities. Results showed that small to moderately sized facilities were visible to the unaided eye at distances greater than 42 km [26 miles (mi)], with turbine blade movement visible up to 39 km (24 mi). At night, aerial hazard navigation lighting was visible at distances greater than 39 km (24 mi). The observed wind facilities were judged to be a major focus of visual attention at distances up to 16 km (10 mi), were noticeable to casual observers at distances of almost 29 km (18 mi), and were visible with extended or concentrated viewing at distances beyond 40 km (25 mi).”

 

Electricity Cost of 800 MW Vineyard Wind Project

 

The electricity cost for Phase 1 of the Vineyard Wind project would start at 7.4 c/kWh in year one, and escalate at 2.5% for 20 years to become 12.13 c/kWh in year 20; average (7.4 +12.13)/2 = 9.763 c/kWh

 

The electricity cost for Phase 2 of the Vineyard Wind project would start at 6.5 c/kWh in year one, and escalate at 2.5% for 20 years to become 10.65 c/kWh in year 20; (6.5 + 10.65)/2 = 8.576 c/kWh. See Appendix 5.

 

NOTE:NE wholesale electricity prices have averaged about 5 c/kWh since 2009, courtesy of 1) the great increase of electricity generated with low-cost, clean burning, low-CO2, domestic natural gas, and 2) electricity generated by near-zero-CO2, NE nuclear plants, which together generated about 67% of electricity fed to the NE grid in 2017. See Appendix.

 

Maine as Third World Country:

CMP Transmission Rate Skyrockets 19.6% Due to Wind Power

 

Click here to read how the Maine ratepayer has been sold down the river by the Angus King cabal.

Maine Center For Public Interest Reporting – Three Part Series: A CRITICAL LOOK AT MAINE’S WIND ACT

******** IF LINKS BELOW DON'T WORK, GOOGLE THEM*********

(excerpts) From Part 1 – On Maine’s Wind Law “Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine if the law’s goals were met." . – Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, August 2010 https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/From Part 2 – On Wind and Oil Yet using wind energy doesn’t lower dependence on imported foreign oil. That’s because the majority of imported oil in Maine is used for heating and transportation. And switching our dependence from foreign oil to Maine-produced electricity isn’t likely to happen very soon, says Bartlett. “Right now, people can’t switch to electric cars and heating – if they did, we’d be in trouble.” So was one of the fundamental premises of the task force false, or at least misleading?" https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/wind-swept-task-force-set-the-rules/From Part 3 – On Wind-Required New Transmission Lines Finally, the building of enormous, high-voltage transmission lines that the regional electricity system operator says are required to move substantial amounts of wind power to markets south of Maine was never even discussed by the task force – an omission that Mills said will come to haunt the state.“If you try to put 2,500 or 3,000 megawatts in northern or eastern Maine – oh, my god, try to build the transmission!” said Mills. “It’s not just the towers, it’s the lines – that’s when I begin to think that the goal is a little farfetched.” https://www.pinetreewatchdog.org/flaws-in-bill-like-skating-with-dull-skates/

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Hannah Pingree on the Maine expedited wind law

Hannah Pingree - Director of Maine's Office of Innovation and the Future

"Once the committee passed the wind energy bill on to the full House and Senate, lawmakers there didn’t even debate it. They passed it unanimously and with no discussion. House Majority Leader Hannah Pingree, a Democrat from North Haven, says legislators probably didn’t know how many turbines would be constructed in Maine."

https://pinetreewatch.org/wind-power-bandwagon-hits-bumps-in-the-road-3/

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