Atlantic States Offshore Wind Consortium

Greg Watson

Senior Advisor to the Secretary for Clean Energy Technology, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs

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Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and the governors of 10 East Coast states recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that formally establishes an Atlantic Offshore Wind Energy Consortium. The mission of the Consortium is to promote a coordinated approach to the development of wind resources on the Outer Continental Shelf. Governor Patrick is a signatory to the MOU, along with his counterparts from Maine, New Hampshire Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina. In addition to the MOU signatories, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Ohio and Michigan (the latter two eyeing the waters of the Great Lakes) are also actively exploring offshore wind options.

I have been involved with the development of wind energy resources off the coast of Massachusetts since 1999 and to me this comes as welcome news. Offshore wind is emerging as a global industry (distinct in many ways from onshore wind) with tremendous potential for meeting current and future electricity demand, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and creating jobs. Approximately 2,400 MW of offshore wind capacity is installed worldwide. The U.K. and Denmark are leading the way. While, to date, there are no wind projects in U.S. waters, that promises to change in the very near future as coastal states that heretofore have been entirely dependent on imports to meet their electricity needs realize that a vast, untapped source of clean energy is now technologically within reach. The agreement among the governors to work together acknowledges the difference between constructing a series of isolated one-off projects and taking steps to create a robust, sustainable industry capable of generating and sustaining manufacturing, construction, and service jobs. Achieving the latter will benefit all of the involved states for decades to come.

Of course, collaboration and competition are not mutually exclusive. As the site for the nation’s first proposed offshore wind farm, Massachusetts has been in the forefront of the U.S. offshore wind activity for the past decade, and we have every intention of maintaining that position. Massachusetts was selected to host the nation’s state-of-the-art facility to test the next generation of giant wind turbine blades. We were the first state to develop a comprehensive ocean management plan that identifies appropriate sites for offshore wind projects in state waters. During the past year, EOEEA sponsored major studies focusing on offshore wind-related transmission and port infrastructure issues. Earlier this year, the nonprofit U.S. Offshore Wind Collaborative (USOWC) was established here in Massachusetts with help from a grant from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center.

This nation’s offshore wind energy resource is vast and inexhaustible. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates it to be roughly 900,000 MW – close to the country’s total installed capacity. Striking the right balance between collaboration and competition will test the leadership skills of state and federal officials as they work with industry and other offshore wind energy stakeholders to transform that potential into a sustainable industry.

Comments

[Pamela Snow]

Thanks for this strong position on sustainable energy policy,more important than ever in light of Gulf Oil Spill. Please continue to push to make this happen!

[Jane Twitmyer]

Why are you siting offshore close in ... as in Cape Wind ... when every aspect of power generation and conservation is better if the windmills are sited on the MAB or the BIGHT?

The Northeast enjoys a large and strong offshore wind resource, THE BIGHT, a continuous, shallow platform of the continental shelf that runs roughly from Cape Cod to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. The low water depth and proximity to the populous East Coast makes the Bight nearly perfect for offshore wind development.

Because of the Bight, East Coast off shore wind could produce the equivalent of 70% of America’s current electricity generation, or on average, 330 GW of electrical power, according to researchers at Stanford University and the University of Delaware. The Bight’s offshore wind energy potential exceeds the region’s current demand for 73 GW of electricity, and would reduce by 68% the region’s CO2 emissions. These percentages are in the range of the global reductions needed to stabilize our atmosphere and will maintain our energy/financial security.

[Greg Watson]

Thank you for your thoughtful comments. As you note, the Mid-Atlantic Bight (MAB) is indeed host to a robust offshore wind energy resource. This fact has not gone unnoticed by researchers at the National Renewable Energy Lab )NREL) and the University of Delaware.

In January 2007 Dr. Willett Kempton and his colleagues at the University of Delaware published a paper in the journal Geophysical Research Letters entitled “Large CO2 reductions via offshore wind power matched to inherent storage in energy end-uses”. In that paper, Dr. Kempton et al. describe the MAB as “a broad sand and gravel shelf of slope 0.001 extending from Cape Hatteras to Cape Cod”. They point out that the optimal value of the MAB offshore wind resource really emerges when it is considered as part of a 1,550-mile-long network of offshore wind farms stretching from Massachusetts to North Carolina.

In fact, connecting offshore wind projects together could create a system that addresses the biggest shortcoming of wind power: intermittency. The idea is straightforward and is backed up by the data that forms the backbone of the University of Delaware paper: If the geographic distribution of networked wind farms is broad enough the wind will always be blowing somewhere in the system. The end result is a steadier and more reliable supply of wind-generated electricity.

It is not a matter of either or. If we all assume some measure of responsibility for meeting our energy needs with renewables, we can create a clean, sustainable and reliable energy system.

[Palm Beach Newspaper]

To find more news on wind energy, check out the Palm Beach Newspaper at http://www.happyherald.com.

[Johnserenity]

Thanks for posting an informative article on the offshore wind energy and the work done by United States Department of Energy is laudable. I hope many wind energy projects will come up in the future. Moreover i recommend the author to visit http://investmentsinenergy.com ,this site has plenty of info and news regarding the offshore wind energy projects and hope this will be very useful for you.