Cape Wind Public Hearings

Posted by Susan Kristoff Mar 9, 2008

This week, a series of four hearings will be held on Cape Cod, Nantucket, and in Boston to discuss the Cape Wind project's draft environmental impact study. The Cape Wind project would install 130 wind turbines off the coast of Hyannis, Massachusetts in Nantucket Sound, and would supply a significant amount of clean and reliable power to the Cape Cod region. This project has seen immense debate since it was announced several years ago. The draft environmental study states that the impacts of the construction and operation of the wind farm will be small. But opposition groups have taken firm stances against the farm. Massachusetts Senator Edward Kennedy has been an opponent of the windfarm, but it should also be noted that the Kennedy compound in Hyannis is close enough to the proposed site that the turbines would be in view on the horizon.

While we struggle with the idea of relying on foreign oil or domestic coal for our power needs, projects like the Cape Wind project and others like it frequently meet roadblocks. Opponents complain about the sight of the turbines, the potential noise, impacts on aviation and environmental concerns, yet the latter has generally been proven minimal by studies. Wind turbines are a proven method to generate clean power. Wind farms are appearing in growing numbers in Texas and California, why can't we use a clean, renewable source like wind here in the Northeast? I think that coal plants and oil refineries are far more of an eyesore than a wind turbine.