By now you’ve probably heard of the Cape Wind project, set to be the first offshore wind farm in the United States. The project has not come without controversy, and after excessive stalling and drama in court, it is back on track and the funding has been secured.
Offshore wind farms are already up and running in many countries around the world, so it’s surprising that it took this long for the U.S. and its loads of coastline to get on track. The project was proposed in 2001 but not much happened until the Department of the Interior approved the project in 2010. That’s when things got messy, and citizens of Nantucket fought the project in court. Of course, citizens included the wealthy Koch family, known to many as stalwart supporters of the fossil fuel industry.
Cape Wind project managers announced financing on Tuesday, which had been secured by the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi. “This is a significant step toward achieving financial close for Cape Wind,†said financial advisor Ted Roosevelt IV.
Now that finances are in order, the project could get started as soon as this year. It will be built in the Horseshoe Shoal in nantucket Sound, generating enough electricity to power three-quarters of Cape and the surrounding islands. It will reduce emissions by 700,000+ pounds every year, and provide thousands of construction jobs and 150 permanent jobs once it is complete.
Do you think this will be the start of many more wind farms in the U.S., or will it be a while before we see more?
Image CC licensed by Andreas Klinke Johannsen: An Offshore windfarm near Copenhagen, Denmark
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