The Decommissioning of Cape Wind

Thank you Michael. There are wealthy families on the Cape and a lot of the financial backing for opposition is coming from them. Sadly, poor communities, without people of means to put up a fight, have little recourse like the town of Chelsea, MA where the developer of Cape Wind is attempting to put in a fossil fuel burning power plant across from an elementary school in an already polluted city (Chelsea already has the highest childhood asthma rates in the State of MA). That is what most developers count on. They have the money to wear the people down, so most often, they get their way.

Dona,

You have identified one of the most significant concerns expressed by wind energy experts regarding Cape Wind:

What to do with a failed/obsolete Manhattan Island scale industrial wind project in a marine environment?

Peer Review Committee, Offshore Wind Energy, New England
Technical Review of Preliminary Screening Criteria for the Cape Wind EIS
Consolidated comments on Section 2.0 and 3.0 of the Draft EIS
September 30, 2003; excerpts:

"Serious concern was expressed about the long-term viability of the project and the possibility of project failure. One reviewer observed that an abandoned wind farm at sea would seem to be the worst possible environmental outcome, with no benefits to offset the impacts. The history of wind projects in the United States has included numerous technology problems, and several failed, bankrupt projects. One reviewer was concerned about the proposed turbines, an early commercial use of turbines that size, let alone in the marine environment. The reviewer felt that a project scaled within the limited industry offshore experience base could help insure the long-term viability of the proposed wind farm."

"From an environmental point of view the largest risk that reviewers see is a failed
project leaving behind an offshore wind farm that is not operational, without sufficient income to address essential maintenance. An abandoned wind farm at sea would seem to be the worst possible environmental outcome."

"Project viability over the long term considering: engineering, design limitations, and technical risks; and the projects financial viability and long-term financial risks.
Emphasis here should be on the long-term risks and unknowns. The worst possible
environmental outcome would be a failed and derelict project, with the owners in
bankruptcy court. This would leave an unattended wind farm exposed to the elements for an extended period of time, with no clear legal path to alternatively refurbish the project, salvage the remains, or decommission the project."


Mr. H.J.M. (Jos) Beurskens Vice President of the European Wind Energy Association Netherlands Energy Research Foundation Energy Centre of the Netherlands

Dr. Carolyn Heeps Environmental Policy Manager Marine Estates Crown Estate, Great Britain

Dr. James F. Manwell Renewable Energy Research Lab College of Engineering - Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering University of Massachusetts – Amherst Dr. Manwell heads this well- respected academic institution that has trained many of today's practicing wind engineers. He is a professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering and has studied wind projects worldwide.

Robert Z. Poore President Global Energy Concepts, LLC Kirkland, WA Mr. Poore has over 20 years experience in the design, test, and analysis of wind energy technology. In 1999 he received the American Wind Energy Association's award for technical excellence and was elected to the Association's Board of Directors by its corporate members.

Dr. Robert W. Thresher U.S. Department of Energy National Wind Technology Center National Renewable Energy Laboratory Golden, Colorado 80401-3393 Dr. Thresher has more than 30 years experience in wind technology, engineering, and aerospace systems. He is Director of NREL's technology center and was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Wind Energy Association in 2001.

Mr. Daniel Zaweski Long Island Power Authority Uniondale, New York 11553

Thank you so much for that important information Barbara. And, of course, I agree with them especially since as far as my research goes I have found no industrial wind facilities that have been removed. Abandoned, yes removed, no.

I found this article as well as the comments to be both of interest and informative. I do believe that I need to know more and will go to the site you mentioned. Guyana.

Michael-

You asked Dona about WHOI, or Woods Hole Oceanographic...here is my answer. You can find those who support and those who oppose Cape Wind in any town on Cape Cod. Despite this, there are specific areas where the former outnumber the latter, and WHOI is one of them. As I see it, the scientic community there has embraced the cry to curb the long term effects of climate change at any cost, and thus supports Cape Wind. Know this, you won't be surprised to learn there is a global warming think tank in that community as well.

Klaus, there is an old Chinese saying that goes something like this "You don't take an ax to remove a fly from a friend's forehead". That is industrial wind in a nutshell. The truth of the matter is that many of the environmental organizations have been swept up in controversy rather than tending to their missions of directly protecting the 'living' resource. And they have abandoned, not only their mission by doing that but their advocacy on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves, the wildlife.