The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority officially concluded that the time isn’t right to build wind turbines in Lake Erie or Lake Ontario. The announcement is being cheered by dealers, boaters, anglers and others throughout the Great Lakes.
As first reported by Barbara O’Brien in The Buffalo News, the decision focuses on the unacceptable economics of offshore turbines rather than the environmental threats they pose. Indeed, the latter is a major reason Canada has a long-standing moratorium against turbines in its portions of the Great Lakes.
For opponents of offshore turbines, New York’s decision couldn’t come at a better time. That’s because the Department of the Interior recently announced that its Bureau of Ocean Energy Management plans to reduce requirements for permitting offshore turbine installations in an effort to speed up such development. A potential 50-turbine proposal along New York’s western Lake Erie shore triggered formation of the Citizens Against Wind Turbines in Lake Erie.
“We celebrate those New Yorkers who, for more than a decade now, have steadfastly fought to protect their portion of the Great Lakes from the economic and environmental damage that hundreds of turbines could cause,” says Michelle Burke, executive director of the Boating Association of Ohio. “New York joins Canada in doing the right thing. We want Ohio to do the same.”
The Michigan Boating Industries Association is on record as opposing construction of any turbines in the Great Lakes. Questionable economics notwithstanding, there are also myriad unstudied environment threats to the lakes, which provide millions of Americans and Canadians with drinking water and recreation opportunities.
“As policy, we at MBIA are not opposed to clean energy,” says MBIA executive director Nicki Polan. “But we’re adamantly opposed to building turbines in any lake when there’s been a complete failure to perform a comprehensive environmental study.”
Michigan borders on four of the five Great Lakes.
Polan’s reference is to federal agencies, including BOEM, that have appropriately required an environmental impact statement for every proposed offshore turbine project on the nation’s East Coast. However, no such critical study was required in the approval process for a now-permitted turbine installation in Lake Erie dubbed “Icebreaker” to be located off Cleveland. It has yet to be built.
Another Ohio group is also calling on the government and citizens to heed the findings of New York’s feasibility study. The Lake Erie Foundation declared its opposition to the turbines as a “threat to the environmental quality, beauty and enjoyment of the lake.”
“There are valuable lessons in this comprehensive examination for anyone charged with or concerned about the care and future of the Great Lakes,” said John Lipaj, a foundation board member.
Following his review of the New York study, he noted, “New York’s Authority rejects the concept of wind turbines in the lakes, sending a strong message to other states and federal regulators.”
The only permitted turbine installation thus far in the Great Lakes is the one off Cleveland. It has faced legal challenges and funding problems but could begin any time, so it remains a prime target for actions to protect the Great Lakes. What’s happened in New York is a boost for boating and fishing interests.
