Behind The Sound Bite: Wind Energy
It took years for the Cape Wind project to win approval, but it finally looks like the 130-turbine offshore wind project along the coast of Massachusetts is really going to happen. And its approval has become a source of great pride for the project’s boosters, including Ian Bowles, outgoing Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs for the state. Bowles was recently quoted by The Associated Press as saying that “Massachusetts is, and will be, the nation’s offshore wind leader.” In this edition of Behind the Sound Bite, we decided to look for the fact and fiction in that claim.
Is Massachusetts a leader when it comes to wind energy?
Well, not exactly. Since Cape Wind hasn’t been built, it’s a bit premature to give the state that title. But no other state in the nation has an offshore wind energy project up and running either, so all 50 states are technically tied at the moment.
What’s the timetable for Cape Wind?
Now that Cape Wind has federal approval and has a rate structure approved by the state Department of Public Utilities, it seems as if all signs are go for the project. The developer predicts that it will take 18 months to complete the project once construction begins.
What other parts of the U.S. are considering offshore wind energy?
There is talk of an offshore wind project in the Great Lakes area. In fact, turbine maker GE has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation to explore such a project, according to the website Greentechmedia.com.
The New York Times also reports that Google and a New York financial firm have partnered to explore the buildout of infrastructure to make offshore wind energy more plausible along the Atlantic seaboard.
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