Offshore wind in Delaware: Hearing from the states leading expert – The News Journal

The nations first offshore wind farm has opened off the coast of Rhode Island, ushering in a new era in the U.S. for the industry. Deepwater Wind built five turbines three miles off Block Island, to power about 17,000 homes. (Dec. 12) AP

Offshore wind farming is a new concept for Delaware, but one that could bring real change should the turbines be built off the Delmarva coast.

With that proposal comes anxiety and fear from local residents. But experts say there's more to it.

In an attempt to examinesome of the rumors and myths, Delaware Online/The News Journal talked toJeremy Firestone, the director of the University of Delaware's Center for Research in Wind (formerly the Center for Carbon Free Power Integration),as well as an attorney, policy scientist and former member of Gov. John Carneys recent Offshore Wind Working Group.

He has worked on studies looking at the public's perception of offshore wind and many other local wind-related issues that could impact coastal Delaware, among other technical aspects of the industry.

In this file photo, Jeremy Firestone, director of UD's Center for Research in Wind, speaks during the first meeting of a working group created by Gov. John Carney to formulate steps the First State can take to get an offshore wind project underway.(Photo: Doug Curran, DOUG CURRAN/SPECIAL TO THE NEWS)

Here's what you need to know about offshore wind development off Delaware's coast and address some of the major concerns raised about the state's proposed partnership with an offshore wind company.

BACKGROUND: Offshore wind company wants to build on state parkland, offering upgrades in exchange

How it was done: Was Delawares connection to offshore wind borne in secrecy? Depends who you ask

Over the years, the size of wind turbines has grown significantly. The newest on the market is a 12-megawatt turbine that stands about 853 feet in height. Delawares only commercial-grade wind turbine at UDs Lewes campus is 404 feet. The turbines off Block Island, Rhode Island, are about 600 feet.

Because the proposed turbines are so large, they will have to be spaced out more than previous plans would have called for, he said. He estimated they will need to be about 1 nautical mile about 1.2 land miles apart.

Wind turbines of the Block Island Wind Farm tower over the water on Oct. 14, 2016, off the shores of Block Island, Rhode Island.(Photo: DON EMMERT, AFP/Getty Images)

But just because its a newer and bigger technology does not necessarily mean greater risk, he said.

They dont look significantly different than the Lewes wind turbine, theyre just bigger, he said. One shouldnt anticipate theres going to be any greater risk involved in a new model of wind turbine.

Just like new car models, wind turbines also go through a series of industry certifications to ensure safety and performance.

Firestone said that even the larger models of wind turbines will be difficult to see from the sandy shores of Delawares beaches. The exception would be on extremely clear days and also depending on what requirements the Federal Aviation Administration will have for nighttime lighting.

In the summer, you probably wont see them very much because of the haze, he said.

rsted's Skipjack Wind Farm off the southern coast of Delawareand U.S. Winds proposed wind farm closer to the coast of Ocean City are both Maryland projects. Maryland will receive the renewable energy credits for those projects, and ultimately the power, too.

A connection in Delaware could bring some benefits, though, Firestone said.

Firstly, the electrons generated by the windmills dont care whose renewable energy portfolio they belong to; theyll go wherever the demand pulls them. That means, if the partnership comes to fruition, technically Fenwick Island and other places hooked to that substation will be using green energy.

Fenwick Island State Park sits mostly empty on a breezy November day. A proposed plan would upgrade the park's amenities in exchange for allowing a Denmark-based company to build a offshore wind connection facility on 1.5 park acres.(Photo: Jenna Miller/Delaware News Journal)

Adding a new energy source to the grid could also help drive prices down, Firestone said. Delmarva largely imports its power and is at the mercy of the pricing of those generators.

Hypothetically, if it costs $20 per megawatt hour to generate power normally, prices can jump to hundreds of dollars in times of high demand, like stretches of hot summer days. Because alternative energy like wind and solar are use-it-or-lose-it sources, theyre always bidding low prices and can help offset those higher costs.

The short way is wind offshore windwill end up lowering prices by a little bit, he said.

Some people and groups like the conservative-leaning Caesar Rodney Institute have estimated very negative impacts to Delawares coastal tourism industry, as well as rental and real estate pricing.

But the data does not back up claims that an offshore wind farm would bring up to a 30 percent reduction to a $6 billion industry, Firestone said.

The University of Delaware study that has been quoted in recent days actually found that those who avoid the Delaware beaches because of wind turbines will be offset by those people who dont mind or are actually interested in seeing them.

Delaware's proposed plan to partner with rstedto connect its wind farm to the grid in Delaware is both usual and unusual, Firestone said.

The only other offshore wind farm along the U.S. East Coast is off Block Island, Rhode Island, and owned by the same company. That also involved a deal between rstedand state officials to connect cables on the land.

"It's unusual in that they dont just want to go under the beach, they want to lease an area of the beach and put up switch gear. In that respect, its different," he said.

This draft rendering shows where the interconnection facility would be, in the top of the photo to the left of the highway along the bay side of Fenwick Island State Park. On the ocean side are some renderings of proposed improvements such as a new visitor center and pedestrian overpass.(Photo: Courtesy of DNREC)

As for how the public found out, there probably could have been better ways to go about it, he said. But it's also not unusual for government to sign memorandums of understanding.

"I think the rollout was probably not as good as it could have been," Firestone said."But its a memorandum of understanding. It'snot a binding agreement and better late to get the publics input than never."

Working in a sandy, dynamic coastal environment has its challenges. rstedis learning that with its project in Rhode Island.

There, thecables connecting the windmills to the grid have become exposed. That's another concern for Delawareans who have learned that offshore wind could be connecting in the First State.

"They (the wind companies) have no incentive at all for their cables to come unburied," he said. But there's a bit of a learning curve for companies on the American side of the Atlantic Ocean as they figure out how to work in shifting, sandy environments.

"A lot goes into, in part, the depth of cable burial, so the deeper youbury it, the more expensive it is," but the less risk you'd have of it coming to the surface, he said.

For the most part, public health risk is minimal, Firestone said.

Fenwick Island State Park sits mostly empty on a breezy November day. A proposed plan would upgrade the park's amenities in exchange for allowing a Denmark-based company to build an offshore wind connection facility on 1.5 park acres.(Photo: Jenna Miller/Delaware News Journal)

What many people who are concerned may not realize is that transmission lines are nearly everywhere, and cables underneath the seafloor are not a new phenomenon.

"I think the health risks are pretty minor," he said."From what we know about electromagnetic frequencies, there are concerns, but thebest science seems to suggest we dont have large concerns. Weve got electromagnetic frequencies all around us."

The World Health Organization has found thatpeople exposed to high levels of electromagnetic frequencies can suffersignificant adverse health impacts such as nerve impacts, but have not found significant evidence that they cause cancer.

Both WHO and the National Cancer Institute have concluded that the current studies and evidence show that low-level exposures do not cause cancer.

While we did not speak directly with Firestone on the environmental impacts of offshore wind development, there are a few issues to consider.

First, exploration to site the turbines will use similar techniques as are used to locate offshore oil and gas drilling. That raises concerns about impacts to marine life that use ecolocation to communicate, as well as potential impacts of adding a manmade structure into the wild ocean.

"While techniques are in some sense similar to [offshore oil and gas], they are different, too, with smaller impacts," Firestone clarified on Friday.

Fenwick Island State Park sits mostly empty in November.(Photo: Jenna Miller/Delaware News Journal)

People also have raised concerns about the impacts of drilling under the ocean beach and building on state park land on the bayside of Fenwick Island State Park. Any disturbance of natural land ultimately has some sort of impact, which will be studied in advance, according to state and company officials.

On the other hand, proponents of the Skipjack connection project in Delaware point to the unrealized risks of continuing to rely on fossil fuel for power, and the air pollution and other adverse impacts that come with that industry.

What did we miss? Contact environmental reporter Maddy Lauria at (302) 345-0608,mlauria@delawareonline.com or on Twitter @MaddyinMilford.

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Offshore wind in Delaware: Hearing from the states leading expert - The News Journal