Deepwater Wind
Last week the final blade was locked into place on a wind turbine. Like many before it, this turbine will go on to power nearby homes and businesses with clean, reliable renewable energy. But this blade is also very different than the land-bound ones that came before it; because as the final bolt was socketed into place America had officially completed its first offshore wind farm.
The Block Island wind project, constructed by Deepwater Wind, is the first of its kind in the nation. Situated three miles off the island carrying the same name, it will power 17,000 Rhode Island homes when it begins operation in October
Block Island wouldn’t have been possible without the tireless work of community members, leaders, unions, and organizations like the Sierra Club advocating for years with the simple contention: We must harness the wind off our shores to power our homes and businesses.
Across the region, states are committing to stronger renewable energy goals while promising deeper cuts in carbon pollution. In conjunction with onshore wind, solar, energy efficiency, and electric vehicle projects, offshore wind is a key ingredient in moving the nation beyond dirty fuels while reinvigorating local economies with homegrown manufacturing and support jobs.
Block Island isn’t just an offshore wind farm, it’s also a starting gun. With projects from Virginia to Massachusetts on the planning board right now, the success at Block Island proves that investment in offshore wind power is viable when done responsibly and with feedback from the community.
In the Northeast, another major opportunity sits off the shores of Long Island. In the next few weeks, the Long Island Power Authority will decide the future of New York’s first offshore wind project, larger in scale and farther offshore than Block Island, which could power nearly 300,000 homes in the downstate area. This, coupled with a commitment by the state of New York to power 50 percent of the state with renewable energy by 2030, means that a lot more renewable energy must be brought on line in the near future.
But New York is not alone in moving forward with offshore wind. Maryland and Massachusetts are doing their part to get into the market as well. In Maryland the Public Service Commission is starting proceedings on a new 200+ megawatt project in September, while Massachusetts has committed to getting 1,600 megawatts of steel in the water by 2027.
As the country continues its path to move beyond coal and reach a 100 percent renewable energy future, key milestones like the completion of the Block Island wind farm must be celebrated for the successes they truly are. But those successes must also propel our movement to the next major project, so that together we can turn back the clock on climate disruption and invest in new cleaner technologies that will vault the region forward in production of renewable energy, implementation of energy efficiency programs, and investment in electric vehicles.