Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:15:23 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/ Cape Wind News en-us http://www.capewind.org/images/logo.gif http://www.capewind.org/ nate@ecape.com http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1082 Article reprinted in its entirety from SNL Financial, with permission. Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:15:23 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1081 Click here to view this interview by Henry Blodget of Business Insider of Cape Wind President Jim Gordon Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:37:37 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1079 The U.S. lags behind other countries in the race for clean technology even though it has the greatest "innovation machine" in the world, U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu told a Stanford University audience Monday. ..."Right now we're in a state of paralysis. Many businesses say, 'No, no, we can't do this; this country was founded on cheap energy and that's what I want.'"But that's just holding off the inevitable. If we hold off the inevitable for another five years or 10 years, we'll lose because other countries are ahead. We will play catch-up and the United States is at risk. Energy touches everything in the United States. It is very important." Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:48:13 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1078 ...We suggest that the time for action is at hand. If the Obama administration is serious about the promise of alternative energies, there is more than enough information on the record to justify giving Cape Wind the go-ahead. A nation that is unwilling to put solid ideas to the test is one that will inherit plenty of wind — but no electrical power to show for it. Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:44:29 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1077 A Wampanoag (WAHM'-pah-nog) Indian tribe from Massachusetts is supporting a proposed Nantucket Sound wind farm opposed by two tribes closer to the project.The Pocasset Wampanoag chairman George Spring Buffalo wrote to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, who is considering the 130-turbine Cape Wind project.  ...He said Cape Wind fits a vision for energy "produced in harmony with nature." Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:37:21 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1076 Two prominent members of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) say there is no historical basis to support claims by tribe leaders that a wind farm in Nantucket Sound would interfere with important cultural ceremonies based on the rising of the sun in the east. They say the claims are fiction.Tribe member Jeffrey Madison, in a February 9 letter sent to Ken Salazar, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Interior, supported by a statement signed by eight members of the tribe including Beverly Wright, a tribal council member and former five-term chairman of the tribe, disputed the tribe's claim about the cultural value of the Cape Wind site. Thu, 25 Feb 2010 06:50:52 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1075 Eight years ago, I was strongly opposed to the wind farm on Nantucket Sound. I didn't think it was worth it to trade the aesthetic and spiritual values of a beautiful natural environment for a limited contribution to our nation's energy problems. Today, I strongly support Cape Wind. Wed, 24 Feb 2010 05:36:22 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1074 The already twisted Nantucket Sound wind farm saga just got a bit stranger: A Wampanoag tribal member says it is “fabricated cosmology’’ that his tribe performs sun ceremonies that need an unobstructed view of the Sound - as the tribe has claimed in a campaign to halt the energy project off Cape Cod.But the tribe member made the allegation only after his law firm was recently hired by the developers of the Cape Wind project.Jeffrey Madison, a Martha’s Vineyard lawyer, wrote in a Feb. 9 letter to US Interior Secretary Ken Salazar that his father and grandfather were both tribe medicine men. “I am stating to you with complete honesty and knowledge that I never participated in, witnessed, or even heard of a sacred spot on the horizon that is relevant to any Aquinnah Wampanoag culture, history or ceremony. Nor did I see, or hear, either my father or grandfather conduct such ceremony,’’ he wrote.Madison also submitted a petition to Salazar with eight signatures of other Wampanoag tribe members, saying they did not believe the wind turbines would “materially interfere with any significant cultural activity.’’ Fri, 19 Feb 2010 07:54:27 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1073 As the U.S. Interior Department nears a decision on Cape Wind's proposal to build 130 wind turbines on Nantucket Sound, rhetoric rises from oceanic depths to 400-foot molehills.Opponents have allied with Wampanoags aiming to protect views of sacred grounds, er, sacred waters, er, sacred something, when tribes aren't busy promoting casinos.  As a fan of Cape Wind, I'd be satisfied with a large fraction of local electricity issuing from silent, nonpolluting technology.Graceful and viable aren't good enough for NIMBYs; they expect magic, as if windmills could be invisible as well. Houses, work places, shops and the wires that carry electricity aren't invisible. Cars, ships delivering goods from China and the machines that wash our clothes and dishes aren't silent. If we've survived those, we can survive wind-powered generators.Opponents claim windmills will "industrialize" Nantucket Sound. That horse escaped the barn 300 years ago during the first oil boom, local whaling, which included smoky, beachfront try-works to render the blubber. Fri, 12 Feb 2010 10:57:41 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1072 The developer of the proposed Nantucket Sound wind farm released a study yesterday that claims the project would save $4.6 billion in New England's wholesale electric costs over 25 years.The nine-page report by Charles River Associates found that if Cape Wind were built the total cost of electricity paid by utilities in the region would be $185 million less on average each year. In 2008, the total wholesale cost of electricity in New England was $12 billion, according to Independent System Operator New England, the organization that manages the region's wholesale electricity market. Thu, 11 Feb 2010 16:12:28 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1071 Thu, 11 Feb 2010 15:24:50 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1070 ...The venture stands as a critical test of whether the Obama administration, which views investing in renewable energy as key to reviving the economy and combating climate change, can launch the clean-energy revolution it has promised voters. Ian Bowles, the Massachusetts energy and environmental affairs secretary, called the Cape Wind project "symbolic of America's struggle with clean energy. Its symbolism has risen above the number of megawatts." Both sides agree that this offshore wind project, which would be the first in the United States and would furnish about 75 percent of Cape Cod's energy, shows just how hard it will be to construct wind farms off America's coasts.   "The tortured history of Cape Wind is not just a not-in-my-backyard story of fisherman and wealthy people on the Cape," said Michael Moynihan, director of the Green Project at NDN, a centrist think tank. "It is emblematic of the difficulty of getting wind online, anywhere in America, with a system designed a century ago that is frankly hostile to renewable energy." Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:54:47 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1069 ...The environmental concerns have been laid to rest by thorough review. Even the latest charge, that the Bush administration "rushed" the review process, doesn't challenge the conclusions officials reached. The aesthetic concerns opponents raise, are, at best, overstated.The U.S. has lagged behind other countries in the development of offshore wind power for years. Far from being rushed, Cape Wind has been through 9 years of redundant reviews. More delay is pointless. Issue your ruling, Mr. Secretary, and let's get to work. Sat, 06 Feb 2010 17:13:57 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1068 Click here to listen to WBUR segment that aired during Morning Edition on February 5, includes Cape resident Bill Eddy who speaks from the heart in support of Cape Wind Click here to listen to WBUR's Radio Boston program of Feburary 5, most of the hour devoted to Cape Wind including Massachusetts Secretary of Energy & Environment Ian Bowles and Cape Wind Communications Director Mark Rodgers as well as WBUR reporter Curt Nickisch who reports on his experience of offshore and onshore wind turbines in Denmark Click here to listen to February 6 segment on Cape Wind on the NPR Program Living On Earth, includes Cape Wind President Jim Gordon Sat, 06 Feb 2010 17:08:56 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1067 ...We understand the concerns of Native Americans and other opponents who love and admire the beauty of Cape Cod.But America’s future depends on energy independence – and the Cape Wind project is a step in that direction. The wind farm would supply, on average, the equivalent of 75 percent of the energy needs of Cape Cod and the Islands. Sat, 06 Feb 2010 16:53:25 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1066 ...No matter where you build in the eastern United States, you are likely to mar someone's view or disturb land that some group considers valuable. In this case, the plan's potential benefits outweigh the drawbacks. The wind farm's developers aim to provide 75 percent of the electricity for the Cape and nearby islands. And the project would be an early test of wind power's feasibility, taking advantage of the area's rare natural setting to push costs down.   The tribes and other locals, on the other hand, would have to put up with windmills many miles offshore. Mr. Salazar should move Cape Wind along. Fri, 05 Feb 2010 04:59:53 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1065 ...Salazar announced no conclusions yesterday about the advisability of locating the wind farm in the scenic Sound, but his visit to the Wampanoag and the area underscores just how high-stakes the Cape Wind farm has become to the Obama administration, which is hoping to accelerate renewable energy efforts and show the world it is serious about fighting manmade climate change. If completed, the project’s developers say it will supply, on average, the equivalent of 75 percent of the energy needs of Cape Cod and the Islands.For opponents and supporters of the wind farm, the day appeared as a kind of last stand after a nine-year permitting saga. About 60 demonstrators waved signs for and against the project as Salazar’s boat docked an hour late in Woods Hole. Wed, 03 Feb 2010 14:53:15 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1064 In 2009, eight new wind power plants came into operations, bringing the total capacity to 2,056 MW. Another 1,000 MW of wind energy offshore will be achieved in 2010. Sun, 31 Jan 2010 20:06:02 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1056 In his Jan. 14 guest commentary, Joe Kennedy announced that he now opposes the development of offshore wind energy. By doing so, Mr. Kennedy has put himself at odds with not only the energy and environmental policies of the United States, Massachusetts and Europe, but also with the most respected environmental and health advocacy organizations, as well as his own prior positions. Thu, 21 Jan 2010 20:07:32 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1055 Recent Letters to the Editor in favor of Cape Wind published in USA Today, the Boston Globe, the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal. Wed, 20 Jan 2010 17:20:29 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1054 ...Interior Department officials pledge to get the project off the ground by April. The Boston Globe reported last week that Mr. Salazar is allowing public comment until Feb. 12 and hopes to have a compromise worked out by March 1. If no compromise is reached, the feds could then take the matter into their own hands. Cape Wind is a worthy, environmentally responsible proposal — and a patient one. After nine years, it’s time to get the 130 turbines installed and turning. Mon, 18 Jan 2010 05:21:12 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1053 ...People opposed to Cape Wind often frame the debate as between preserving the pristine nature of Nantucket Sound versus the change that will come with an industrial-scale wind farm. I think this is a false premise that Salazar needs to examine, because Nantucket Sound is not pristine, and it is certainly changing right now, even though those changes may be hard to see.With our reliance on fossil fuels, we are changing the temperature and the chemistry of Nantucket Sound. Those changes are impossible to see from the land and we may not notice them, but fish will notice them and move as a result. And shellfish, from large lobsters and scallops to small pteropods at the base of the food chain, will fight against an acidifying ocean that will damage their calcium carbonate shells and skeletons.And, of course, warmer oceans mean sea level rise, and a warmer atmosphere means more energy and more severe storms, and the result of that will be an eroding shoreline and the loss of wetlands that are no longer free to migrate as sea levels change.And this doesn't even include the obvious and news-making oil spills. I am a longtime volunteer and past board president of the Coalition for Buzzards Bay, which led the cleanup of 98,000 gallons of No. 6 oil spilled by Bouchard in Buzzards Bay on the way to the Cape's power plant.Nor does it include the eutrophication caused by nitrogen loading from inadequate sewage treatment. So as we do nothing to change whence we get our power, we are changing Nantucket Sound for the worse. There is certainly no status quo to protect. We should be talking about what kind of change we want. No change is not an option. Sun, 17 Jan 2010 09:39:22 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1052 Click here to view Clean Skies TV segment on Cape Wind which includes interviews with US Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Cape Wind President Jim Gordon Sun, 17 Jan 2010 09:32:59 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1051 ...Cape Wind president Jim Gordon, opened his press conference by saying that he was convinced Secretary Salazar would approve Cape Wind.He later stressed that the developers already had made significant concessions to opponents, including reducing the number of turbines form 170 to 130, reconfiguring the array to avoid submerged areas identified as potentially archeologically significant and to reduce the breadth of view from national historic landmarks, eliminating lighting to the greatest allowable extent, and agreeing to paint jobs which would minimize visibility.In June 2009, the company had put forward a mitigation plan as part of the consultation process, to which the other parties had not responded.“We have tried to be as reasonable as we can within the bounds of actually making the project move forward,” Mr. Gordon said.  “The only proposal the opponents have brought to date, and they did that in the meeting today, was recommending that we start from square one.”He noted that the United States was now 20 years behind Europe in developing offshore wind, and that China had just installed its first offshore development, near Shanghai.  “And they started well after Cape Wind did,” Mr. Gordon said. Sun, 17 Jan 2010 09:30:26 -0500 http://www.capewind.org/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1050 The Obama administration moved a step closer on Wednesday to ending the nearly decade-long conflict over a major wind power installation off Cape Cod, Mass. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, after meeting with virtually all of the parties to the dispute, said that he intended to decide whether to approve the wind turbine project no later than April. Thu, 14 Jan 2010 14:47:50 -0500