Outer Cape residents filled a hotel ballroom to capacity in Eastham Wednesday for a meeting on offshore wind development areas off Cape Cod’s eastern shore.
The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management hosted the information session in response to complaints that the agency has not done enough on the Outer Cape to communicate its plans. The agency has proposed eight areas for lease to developers, totaling nearly 1 million acres.
Among the concerned residents to speak were fishers, a charter boat owner, and Select Board members from at least five towns. Recurring themes included protecting Stellwagen Bank, the location of cable landings, and the role of offshore wind in reducing climate change.
Federal plans show offshore wind areas in the Gulf of Maine starting about 25 miles off Cape Cod.
Luke Feinberg, a project coordinator with BOEM, told the audience the agency does not anticipate that electrical cables would make landfall on the Outer Cape because the area does not have the infrastructure or electrical demand to support it. The closest grid connections BOEM has analyzed are in Sandwich and Plymouth.
“Just want to be very clear, that as we predict today, cables would not be landing in the Outer Cape area or going through the Outer Cape area,” he said.
But a Barnstable resident questioned that claim, saying that in Barnstable, Vineyard Wind built the substation it needed.
Suzanne Bryan, a member of the Eastham Select Board, said plans for offshore wind off the Outer Cape came as a surprise.
“I've heard the governor and lieutenant governor and senators talk for a couple of years in a row, and we haven't heard about this project,” she said. “They didn't say anything about it. They talk about green energy and our goals, and … not a whisper.”
Some participants called for a delay or “reset” of the federal leasing process to allow people on the Outer Cape to get all of their questions answered.
“I think that there should be a reset of the clock, and we should be part of the planning process, just like the people in Maine were and many of the people in New Hampshire,” said Lilli-Ann Green, Wellfleet representative on the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates.
She said members of the Assembly were supposed to be invited to be part of an intergovernmental task force on the wind areas in 2019, but she could find no record of that happening.
Brewster resident Chris Powicki described himself as a strong supporter of responsible offshore wind development. He said offshore wind is essential to addressing climate change, but planning for the Gulf of Maine needs to “take a little bit of a step back.”
“Offshore wind is the best solution for Massachusetts,” he said. “It's the biggest solution, biggest contribution we have. But I feel like the state of Massachusetts has failed in not doing a proper job of getting this community involved. Tonight's meeting shows how much people want more engagement.”
Michael Russo of Eastham, a commercial fisherman for more than 40 years, said he could only speak from his experience gillnetting in seven out of the eight lease areas.
“I can't imagine … steaming through these areas in heavy weather,” he said. “I've had trips where it's taken me over 24 hours, 26, 28 hours, to get home from the Northern Edge in heavy weather with zero visibility, just hoping you didn't run into another vessel.”
Elena Rice, who owns Reel Deal Fishing Charters in Truro with her husband Bobby Rice, said they have numerous concerns about wind turbines off the Outer Cape.
“I'm not convinced that there's adequate data to show that the bluefin tuna, striped bass, and whale behavioral and fishing patterns are not going to be dramatically impacted by these projects,” she said.
Among members of the audience who expressed support for Outer Cape offshore wind were staff from carpenters’ and electricians’ unions and a member of the League of Conservation Voters.
“If this is done right, it can benefit everybody,” said electrician Doug Nelson of Dennis. He said 200 electricians from southeastern Massachusetts, including Cape Cod and the Islands, have worked on Vineyard Wind.
A public comment period on the proposed lease areas ended July 1, but a comment period remains open through July 22 on a draft environmental assessment of activities that follow the leasing, such as biological and geological surveys.
As plans stand today, BOEM intends to auction the lease areas in the fourth quarter of this year, likely in late October.
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Find more reporting about offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine here.
