New England fisheries and industry organizations want more details on the possible economic and environmental effects from the proposed 800-MW Vineyard Offshore Wind Project project off the coast of southeastern Massachusetts.
The Interior Department's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management held an open comment period for its notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement, or EIS, for an offshore wind farm being developed by Vineyard Wind LLC, a joint venture by Avangrid Renewables LLC and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners K/S. More than 140 comments from stakeholders were uploaded between May 8 and May 10 in the Federal Register (No. BOEM-2018-0015).
Fishing organizations from Massachusetts and Rhode Island expressed concern that the facility will cut the industry off from key fishing spots within the lease area, leading to severe revenue losses. David Pierce, the director of Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, said in an April 30 letter that assuming fishing vessels will have access to the waters is "an oversimplification" and that the wind industry should detail the various ways commercial and recreational fishing could be disrupted.
Between 2007 and 2012, about 14% of annual average fishing revenues from 10 species came from within the Massachusetts Wind Energy Area, where Vineyard Wind and other offshore wind facilities could be located, according to Vineyard Wind's draft construction and operations plan. The report also indicates that the annual average revenue from harvesting lobster in the Massachusetts Wind Energy Area between 2007 and 2012 was about $300,000.
"Vineyard Wind has not proposed any compensation for this future lack of access, product and income that the project will inflict on those who use the seabed for a fishery and whose correlative rights are not being protected," Meghan Lapp, the fisheries liaison for Rhode Island seafood wholesaler Seafreeze Ltd., said in an April 30 letter to federal regulators. She added that BOEM needs to "gather detailed fisheries activity and socioeconomic information that can be used for financial compensation for every vessel that will be operationally excluded."
Government bodies and conservation groups also flagged potential issues that they want to see addressed. The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration's Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office in Gloucester, Mass. said it wants more numbers on how building up offshore wind development and subsequent suppliers in the region would impact fisheries not only in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, but also in New York and New Jersey.
"We understand your design envelope concept allows for a range of turbine spacing in the project proposals; however, specific alternative spacing and layouts should be considered in the EIS," regional coordinator Michael Pentony said in an April 27 letter.
Fish lures
The fishing industry also raised concerns over how the Vineyard Wind project will affect fish, marine mammals and their habitats. For example, areas within and around the Massachusetts Wind Energy Area have become a crucial habitat for the North Atlantic right whale, a critically endangered species, said J. Grant Moore, president of the Atlantic Offshore Lobstermen's Association.
Other industry groups have noted that the country's first offshore wind facility, the 30-MW Block Island Offshore Wind project in Rhode Island, actually helped the fishing community. Ray West and Steven Medeiros — presidents of the Massachusetts Striped Bass Association and Rhode Island SaltWater Anglers Association, respectively — said Block Island's wind turbines attracted black sea bass, cod and other species to the area and replaced traditional power generation that would pollute the ocean.
Vineyard Wind is scheduled to begin construction in 2019, aiming for the project to become operational by 2021. It is one of three projects competing for New England utilities' joint request for proposals for offshore wind projects, as part of Massachusetts' clean energy mandate for utilities to procure 1,600 MW of offshore wind. The other two projects are Revolution Wind Offshore farm, from Deepwater Wind and National Grid USA, and Bay State Offshore Wind project from Ørsted A/S and Eversource Energy. The deadline to select one or more of the projects is May 23.
