Council Seeks Clarity On Wind Farm Distance From Developers

OCEAN CITY — Resort officials this week voted to pen another letter to the developers of wind energy farms off the coast of Ocean City urging them to move the turbines at least 26 miles offshore after learning a wind farm project in Virginia would be situated 27 miles off the coast.

In May, the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) announced it had awarded offshore wind renewable energy credits (ORECs) to two different companies vying to develop offshore wind energy farms off the coast of Ocean City, setting in motion an approval process for both projects. The US Wind project will put 62 turbines as close as 12-15 miles from the shore in its first phase, while the Deepwater Wind’s Skipjack project, which is considerably smaller in scale at 15 turbines as close as 19 miles off the resort coast.

Prior to the PSC approval in May, both companies presented comprehensive plans of their proposals to the Mayor and Council including the distance of the first line of turbines from the shore at the western edge of the designated Wind Energy Area (WEA). From the beginning, while they generally support the concept of clean, renewable offshore wind turbines, the Mayor and Council have been adamant about the distance of the first line of turbines from the shoreline and their potential impact on the views of the Ocean City horizon both during the day and at night.

The resort’s elected officials expressed a desire to not have the turbines visible from the Ocean City shoreline at all, but short of that, they pushed for the wind farms to be situated at least 26 miles off the coast, a distance deemed by some calculations to assure they won’t be visible during the day or at night. After the presentations in May, the Mayor and Council fired off a letter to the PSC and the resort’s state and federal representatives expressing their desires regarding the distance of the wind farms from the shoreline.

Last week, after learning Virginia had reached an agreement for a similar, although significantly smaller, wind energy farm sited 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach, Councilman Tony DeLuca this week made a motion a second letter be sent to US Wind and Deepwater Wind reiterating its desire to have the wind energy farms off the coast of Ocean City situated at least 26 miles offshore in a classic “what’s good for the goose is good for the gander” scenario.

When US Wind presented its project to the Mayor and Council, the original proposal called for locating the first line of turbines as close as 12 miles due east of the coast of the resort, but after concerns were raised, US Wind offered to move the first line of turbines back five more miles. The Skipjack project calls for just 15 turbines starting at 19 miles off the coast, but they are considerably taller.

In addition, the Skipjack project area is situated more off the coast of Delaware with the first row of turbines 20 miles from the north end of Ocean City and 30 miles from the Inlet and downtown area. However, in the fact sheets for both projects approved by the PSC earlier this year, the US Wind project would be sited 12-15 miles off the coast and the Skipjack project would be sited 17-21 miles off the coast.

DeLuca pointed out US Wind’s proposed concession on the distance from the shoreline issue on Monday and said the company’s offer to move back five more miles to 17 miles fell short of the resort’s desire.

“If you remember, when both companies came in here and presented, US Wind told us it was going to be 12 miles and we asked them to move to 26 miles,” he said. “They came back and said they could move it back to 17 miles. They basically moved it five miles.”

As far as the Deepwater Wind project, DeLuca said the company has never returned with any alternative distance further from the shoreline.

“When Deepwater Wind came in, they said it was going to be approximately 19 miles,” he said. “I asked them to move it to 26 miles and they said they would have to check with the project manager. We’ve yet to hear from either of them.”

DeLuca said reading about Virginia’s deal to site wind turbines 27 miles off its coast prompted him to seek a similar concession for the approved Maryland projects, which was the catalyst for the call for a second letter to the companies on Monday.

“I read the notice that Virginia Beach had cut a deal to have their wind turbines 27 miles offshore and I just said ‘wow’,” he said. “I’d like to draft another letter to both of them and ask them what their response is to our request for 26 miles. One company hasn’t given us a response and one company moved it five miles. We still want 26 miles.”

During the two presentations in May, both companies pointed out moving the first line of turbines farther off the coast of Ocean City would come with a stiff price tag estimated at $1 million per mile. However, Councilman John Gehrig said on Monday that was essentially just a drop in the bucket compared to the weighty overall cost of the project and the upfront burden on the taxpayers.

“We need to remember that the Maryland taxpayers are on the hook for this project for $2 billion,” he said. “I don’t want to hear about a million dollars a mile to move them back.”

Mayor Rick Meehan agreed to pen the letter to the two companies reiterating the town’s desire to have the first line of turbines at least 26 miles offshore and said it should also be sent to Ocean City’s state and federal partners.

“I agree with the letter and I agree with the action the council has taken,” he said. “I think we need to send a copy of that letter to all of our representatives and make sure they are aware of what we’re asking and what their response, or lack of a response, has been.”

When the PSC approved the two Maryland projects in May, it acknowledged Ocean City’s deep concerns about the ability to see the turbines from the shore and the impact those views could have on tourism and aesthetics. However, the PSC added no specific conditions on the distance of the wind farms from the shore, instead leaving it rather open-ended.

“We certainly recognize that there is strong public demand to make sure that sightlines to the turbines, particularly from Ocean City, are minimized to the fullest extent possible,” said PSC Commissioner Anthony O’Donnell. “As a condition of our order, US Wind is required to locate its project as far to the east, or away from the shoreline, of the designated wind energy area (WEA) as practical. Each developer also must take advantage of the best commercially-available technology to lessen the views of the wind turbines by beach-goers and residents, both during the day and at night.”

While the PSC did recognize Ocean City’s concerns, it appears the rather nebulous conditions will fall short of the town’s desire to site the turbines at least 26 miles off the resort’s coast with clauses such as “minimized to the fullest extent possible” and “as far to the east as practical.”

About The Author: Shawn Soper

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Shawn Soper has been with The Dispatch since 2000. He began as a staff writer covering various local government beats and general stories. His current positions include managing editor and sports editor. Growing up in Baltimore before moving to Ocean City full time three decades ago, Soper graduated from Loch Raven High School in 1981 and from Towson University in 1985 with degrees in mass communications with a journalism concentration and history.