wind power
The Siting Process for Offshore Wind
Are environmental & visual impacts stalling the process?
By David P Flynn
ONE OF THE MOST exciting growth opportunities for renewable energy in the United States is
offshore wind. Offshore wind development in other areas of the world, including Europe, has
made significant headway and is well established. To date, however, there has been little, if any,
commercial development of offshore wind power in the US.
Given the physical size of this country, the extent of our shoreline, and the fact many of our
population/load centers are along a coast, offshore wind has the potential to become an important component of the renewable energy supply mix. In fact, this industry in the US is not only
limited to near-shore, ocean-based projects, but could also include significant offshore wind resources in the Great Lakes—some of the strongest potential wind resources in the entire country.
As with any emerging industry, there are several issues that should first be addressed to create
a sustainable, commercially viable resource. As evidenced by the siting process associated with
proposed offshore projects in Massachusetts, and elsewhere, the siting of offshore wind projects
can be a difficult, expensive, divisive, and protracted exercise. Concerns about avian and other
environmental impacts are significant, and should be studied regionally and on a project-specific
basis. These studies support informed decisions while including relevant information about a project’s attributes and potential impacts, such as location, configuration, tower height, and so forth.
These issues are not that different from concerns associated with landside wind projects. However, other environmental issues, such as potential impacts to aquatic resources, disturbance of
contaminated sediments as a consequence of project construction, and possible EMF impacts to
marine life, can be unique to offshore wind projects, and are currently less understood. The ability to
develop a comprehensive base of reliable information to support an informed decision about these
potential impacts is critical to understanding them and moving the offshore wind industry forward.
Even more problematic for any offshore development, however, has been siting concerns related to visual impacts. In fact, the majority of projects that are stalled appear to have visual impact
concerns among their key issues. Efforts to develop meaningful, related criteria and protocols, on
a national and regional basis, may well determine how significantly the US develops this resource.
What is necessary entails thoughtful, inclusive, and equitable approaches to assessing visual
impacts. Do we want a project that places The Statue of Liberty in the shadow of a field of 7 MW
offshore turbines? Of course not. Alternatively,
should we not allow a project where a turbine
tower just barely appears over the horizon? To
move forward, it’s important to make some
collective value judgments about the benefits
of offshore wind relative to these perceived or
actual impacts. Identifying ways to mitigate
visual impacts and developing technologies
that allow cost-effective turbines in deeper
waters, more distant from the shoreline, are
essential.
Development of a robust, integrated supply
chain for offshore wind is also important, as
any significant or sustainable offshore development likely won’t occur until a domestic supply
chain is in place. Not only does a supply chain
directly support the development of offshore
wind projects by providing the necessary people and materials, it also facilitates economic
growth through the creation of new business
opportunities and jobs to support the industry.
Although it may be argued that a turbine is a
turbine regardless of where it’s located, on land
or in water, an offshore turbine has significant
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differences that require an independent supply
chain for certain components. For example,
towers and foundations for offshore projects
are very different. Turbines for offshore applications can be larger; underwater cabling
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Though it won’t be easy, informed decision
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David P Flynn is a partner at Phillips Lytle LLP,
concentrated in the areas of environmental law
and energy. As the firm’s Energy Practice team
leader, he has represented multiple developers
on land-based and offshore wind projects.
Phillips Lytle LLP
www.phillipslytle.com
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