It is baffling that the Massachusetts wind energy project is meeting such a strong, well, headwind.
The project, which could supply 75 percent of the electricity needs of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, is opposed by the well-heeled residents of the islands, and many mainlanders as well. They have been fighting Cape Wind, as it is known, since it was first proposed in 2001. U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy is one of the naysayers, even though the development of alternative energy sources is vital to our environmental and foreign policy interests.
Happily, Rhode Island is staking out its own more forward-looking position on this issue.
A month ago, Gov. Donald L. Carcieri and the General Assembly proposed the creation of the R.I. Power Authority, a quasi-public agency that would facilitate investment in green energy projects in the state. Wind energy and small hydroelectric generators are among the options.
At the same time, a report on the RIWINDS initiative shows great promise for wind energy projects.
According to the study – performed at the behest of the governor – eight municipalities have expressed an interest in small wind power projects. And while only one viable onshore site for a 10-megawatt generator was identified (in Little Compton), the study yielded 10 different potential offshore sites that together could generate up to 6 million megawatts per year. (Cape Wind, by way of contrast, could produce up to 468 megawatts of electricity per year.)
We hope that the governor and the legislature will address this important issue by making the R.I. Power Authority a reality – before the 2007 legislative session comes to an end – and moving forward the creation of Rhode Island’s wind power industry.
