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Is the Answer, My Friend, Really Blowing in the Wind? Why Environmentalists are Split on Wind Energy.


The Quick Facts: Wind energy, a renewable and clean energy source, involves the harnessing of wind by humans and conversion of the wind’s kinetic energy into electricity. Wind energy offers many advantages over fossil fuels, including zero emissions and an abundant domestic supply. Wind energy could be the answer to some of the biggest environmental issues for our generation and for our children’s generation, including global warming and air quality issues, as well as limited fossil fuel supplies and high energy costs. Despite the advantages of wind energy over fossil fuels, as of 2005, wind made up only 0.39% of the United States’ sources of energy. One of the reasons the development of wind energy as a source of energy for the United States has been hampered is because of opposition by—believe it or not—environmentalists. While many environmentalists support wind energy projects as a solutions-based approach to the issue of global warming, other environmentalists oppose certain wind energy projects, raising concerns of the protection of natural resources such as birds, marine species and pristine vistas. In the end, it appears environmental advocates on both sides of the wind energy debate are really not that far apart, as they agree that the state and Federal government’s handling of the Cape Wind project, the Nation’s first proposed offshore wind farm on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound, will set a precedent, and that measures are necessary to fill gaps in state and Federal review and oversight of proposed wind energy projects.

Ahh . . . . Can you hear it? The wind. Harnessing energy from the wind—a clean, renewable energy source—is the perfect solution to the Nation’s energy crisis and reliance on limited oil supplies, and it’s a step in the right direction for correcting global warming and other air quality issues, all of which are some of the biggest threats to our generation and our children’s generation. It’s about time. Or is it? It seems environmentalists are vehemently split on the issue. As a resident of a small Massachusetts town, I am keenly aware of the debate with a local wind farm project proposed in my hometown and the Nation’s first offshore wind farm proposed on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound. With proposed windmills set to reach over 400 feet in height (that’s taller than the Statute of Liberty), is this simply a case of wealthy residents, environmentalists and politicians fighting to keep these structures from view of their backyards or are the concerns of land rights, lack of federal standards and effects on migratory species genuine and urgent?

Wind Energy Basics
Before we can understand the controversy, it helps to understand the basics of wind energy. Wind is actually a form of solar energy. Winds are produced as an effect of the sun’s uneven heating of the earth’s surface and the atmosphere, along with the earth’s rotation. Wind energy is produced when humans “capture” the kinetic energy in wind into mechanical power and convert that mechanical power into electricity. Essentially, wind turbines are giant fans, only they run backwards. Instead of using electricity to generate the fan, the wind turns the fan and generates electricity.

Wind energy is deemed to be a renewable energy source because as long as there is a sun in our universe, there will be wind on Earth. Wind is a clean energy source and wind turbines do not pollute the air. Wind energy is a domestic source of energy, and wind supply is abundant. The National Wind Technology Center estimates that geographic areas with large wind supplies (about 6 percent of the contiguous United States) have the potential to generate more than 1.5 times the current electricity consumption of the United States. For all of these reasons, wind energy offers many advantages over energy obtained from the combustion of fossil fuels—which produce atmospheric emissions that cause acid rain, greenhouse gasses, and require a reliance on foreign sources. While there are disadvantages to wind energy, including the fact that the wind may be an intermittent source and good wind sites are often located in remote areas that may be far from the populations that need electricity, the United States Department of Energy’s (“DOE”) Wind and Hydropower Technologies Program reports that technological advancements continue to find solutions to these issues.

The DOE heralds wind energy as the fastest growing energy source in the world. According to the DOE’s Wind and Hydropower Technologies Program, in 2005, wind generated over 17 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) annually—enough electricity to power about 1.6 million homes. Still, according to the Energy Information Administration, as of 2005, wind made up only 0.39% of the United States’ sources of energy. In contrast, coal comprised 49.69% of the United States’ sources of energy.

The Controversy: Why Environmentalists are on Both Sides
In light of all of the advantages of wind energy, why is it still such a negligible source of energy for the United States? In addition to limited funding sources and competition with conventional generation sources, wind energy as a source of energy for the United States is being hampered by—believe it or not—environmentalists. While many environmentalists support proposed wind energy projects, many others oppose them. At the core of the controversy are the concerns of clean, renewable energy versus protection of natural resources such as birds, marine species and pristine vistas.

In order to best understand both sides of the issue, it helps to look at an example of a proposed project that is currently the subject of much controversy. Cape Wind Associates, LLC (“Cape Wind”) is proposing the Nation’s first offshore wind farm on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound. At a cost of more than $700 million, Cape Wind seeks to erect 130 wind turbines in an area that is less than 5 miles from the Cape Cod shore and less than nine miles from Martha’s Vineyard. The towers of each turbine would stand over 400 feet in height (that’s more than 40 stories), with foundations between 5 and 6.5 meters across driven approximately 85 feet into the sea bed. Turbine towers would be spaced approximately 1/3 mile apart. Together the wind turbines would produce up to 420 megawatts of clean, renewable energy—enough energy to provide 75% of the electricity needs of Cape Cod and the islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.

Supporters of the Cape Wind project include many local and national environmental organizations, including:

Opponents of the Cape Wind project also include many local and national environmental organizations, including:

Supporters of the Cape Wind project tout the socioeconomic, public health and environmental benefits of the project. The project would mean lower energy costs, local jobs and cleaner air. Many supporters herald the project as an important step in a solutions-based approach to the issue of global warming. Opponents of the project raise concerns of harm to the local fishing industry during construction and due to navigational hazards post-construction, harm to marine species and migratory birds, and scenic blight. Opponents are particularly concerned over the potential impact of the noise of construction on marine mammals and fish, which some argue could cause injury or harassment, and the potential risks to birds, which are site-specific, and may include disturbance, displacement, barriers to movement, collision and habitat loss.

Interestingly, it seems many environmentalists on both sides of the issue do agree that the way this proposed project is handled (as the first proposed offshore wind energy facility in the Nation) will be precedent setting. To that end, advocates on both sides are calling for measures to fill gaps in state and Federal review and oversight of the proposed project, raising issues such as:

So, perhaps the split in the opinion of environmentalists on the issue of wind energy is really not all that wide after all. Whether in support or opposition to wind farm projects, environmentalists raise similar concerns. The only difference in the stance of the two sides is how they prioritize their concerns. It seems those in support of wind energy projects prioritize clean, renewable energy and concerns about the detrimental long-term effects of global warming on humans and wildlife. While those in opposition to the project prioritize the immediate and long-term protection of wildlife. No matter what side of the issue you may be on, we may all agree that given the precedent setting nature of the Cape Wind project, the state and Federal governments’ handling of the permitting process on the Cape Wind project is very important. If handled correctly, it appears that concerns from environmentalists on both sides of the issue could be addressed and successfully resolved.

If you are interested in learning about existing and proposed wind energy projects near you, you can visit the website of the American Wind Energy Association (“AWEA”), which provides a state-by-state listing of existing and proposed projects at http://www.awea.org/projects/index.html, as well as a list of projects installed in 2005 at http://www.awea.org/newsroom/2005_projects.pdf.

Post Script:
At the time that this article was drafted, a last-minute amendment to the Coast Guard Reauthorization Act (H.R. 889) had been introduced by Representative Don Young (R-AK), which would bar offshore wind energy facilities within 1.5 nautical miles of shipping and ferry lanes. Representative Young has justified the proposed amendment by citing British studies suggesting wind turbines closer than 1.5 miles to shipping lanes could disturb marine radar and create a navigational hazard. However, offshore oil and gas rigs would still be allowed to be located as close as 500 feet to shipping channels. Unfortunately, if passed, the Young Amendment would all together prevent state and Federal environmental regulatory review of the issues presented in this article. The Young Amendment would not only prohibit the Cape Wind project, but would harm the emergence of the wind energy industry by severely limiting offshore facilities. The Young Amendment avoids the state and Federal regulatory process under which the review of offshore renewable energy projects is assigned to the Department of the Interior under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, and it prevents case-by-case review of projects. But, what’s most concerning about the Young Amendment is that it raises concerns about the influence of special interests and lobbyists in Congress and the bad public policy of adding important environmental legislation into bills at the last minute and thereby avoiding legislative scrutiny. As one editorial said, “It will be a travesty if this alternative energy project [the Cape Wind project], one that has been winding its way through the public regulatory process for four years, is stopped by an abuse of legislative procedures.”

Information used in this article was found at the following sources, which you can visit if you want to find out more about this topic:

http://www.capewind.org/ (website of Cape Wind Associates, LLC, providing information on the Cape Wind project, as well as wind energy in general).

http://www.hsus.org/ (website of the Human Society of the United States; article on wind farms)

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/ (website of the United States Department of Energy’s Wind and Hydropower Technologies Program, providing basic information on wind energy and wind turbines)

http://www.massaudubon.org/PDF/advocacy/Windpower2.pdf (website of the Massachusetts Audubon Society; position statement on wind energy development)

http://www.capecodonline.com/special/windfarm/ (website of the Cape Cod Times, providing the latest news and resources related to the proposed Cape Wind project)

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/wind/basics.html (website of the Public Broadcasting System; article on wind power basics)

http://www.saveoursound.org/Cape/Concerns.aspx (website of Save Our Sound, an alliance to protect Nantucket Sound; page listing concerns with the Cape Wind project)

http://www.clf.org/programs/cases.asp?id=600 (website of Conservation Law Foundation; comments of the Conservation Law Foundation in regard to the proposed Cape Wind project)

www.environmentalLeague.org (website of the Environmental League of Massachusetts; provides comments on the proposed Cape Wind project)

http://www.grist.org/news/power/2002/12/19/griscom-windmill/ (website of the Grist magazine, providing environmental news and commentary; article entitled “Tilting at Windmills: Activists are split on a proposed wind project off Cape Cod”)

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:h.r.00889: (website of the Library of Congress; link to summary of H.R. 889).

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