Cape Wind could supply almost half of the supply of renewable energy that Massachusetts needs by 2009 to meet the target mandated by the Massachusetts Legislature’s Renewable Portfolio Standard. It is doubtful Massachusetts can meet its renewable energy mandate without the Cape Wind project.

No. The US Commission on Ocean Policy report recognizes the benefits of offshore clean energy projects that reduce the ocean threats of pollution and climate change and reduce our reliance on foreign energy and their report calls for a streamlined review process. The US Oceans Commission Executive Director Thomas Kitsios recently stated that their report’s recommendations on government agencies’ review of offshore renewable energy projects were never intended to apply to the Cape Wind project. The Massachusetts Ocean Commission Report recognized the benefits that offshore renewable energy can play in helping to reduce threats to ocean health and the report clearly states that its policy recommendations are not intended to delay projects currently being reviewed. Finally, while the Pew Oceans report does not consider the issue of government management of offshore renewable energy proposals, it does stress, as all three reports do, the threat to our oceans from climate change. In fact, the Pew Report goes so far as to state, “The Commission feels strongly that the U.S. and its global neighbors must do the one thing that can help directly limit the effects of climate change on the marine environment – reduce our emissions of greenhouse gases that contribute to the problem. Only then can we assure coming generations and ourselves that the recommendations we offer will keep the bountiful seas we envision.”

Yes. In the Energy Policy Act of 2005, Congress and the President gave explicit authority to the Minerals Management Service (MMS) to grant easements on the outer continental shelf for the commercial development of offshore wind energy. The MMS also has the authority to implement a system for lease or rent payments from offshore wind projects to the federal government. The Federal Government would share offshore wind revenues with the nearest State.

The US Government provides an incentive to wind power development in the form of reducing wind farms’ Federal tax burden based on their successful production of clean energy. This program is called the Production Tax Credit for wind energy and provides an allowance of 1.9 cents per kilowatt hour produced that can be deducted from Federal taxes owed. It is estimated that for every dollar the Federal government provides to encourage renewable energy, it provides ten dollars to fossil fuel and nuclear energy from a myriad of programs used to subsidize conventional energy production.

Massachusetts electricity consumers fund the implementation of the Massachusetts Renewable Portfolio Standard that provides revenue to renewable energy providers like Cape Wind, however Cape Wind will help reduce the cost of this program to Massachusetts electricity consumers by substantially increasing the supply of renewable energy in the region.