SNOW HILL – The Worcester County Commissioners this week reiterated their concerns about recent whale deaths and a possible link to offshore wind.
The commissioners voted 6-0 on Tuesday to begin sending weekly letters to state and federal officials expressing their alarm over recent whale deaths and concern about the unknowns associated with offshore wind.
“Because it’s a green initiative, I think everybody’s afraid to speak out against it,” Commissioner Joe Mitrecic said. “If we change the oceans today, we have no idea what the effect is going to be in the future. The ocean is delicate infrastructure. If we take one of the entities out of that it could change it forever and we could maybe never get it back.”
Following a slew of whale deaths along the East Coast during the last several months, local officials have questioned whether there’s a link to seismic testing associated with planned offshore wind farms.
While the offshore wind industry has dismissed any connection to the recent whale deaths and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration states there’s no specific link between recent whale mortalities and ongoing surveys for offshore wind development, local officials still worry there’s a connection.
“I think we have nine now whales and possibly a dolphin that washed up on shore,” Mitrecic said. “The marine mammals are taking a beating whether it’s originating off the Jersey coast or the Maryland coast or wherever.”
Though some cite the cause of the recent whale deaths as boat strikes or lobster pots, Mitrecic said it was ironic that those causes were killing whales now that offshore wind was under development.
Mitrecic said that while he knew Rep. Andy Harris shared the same concerns he felt the commissioners should also express their concerns to other state and federal officials, including the governor’s office.
“If we need to write a letter a week we need to do it in order to get it right,” he said. “I think this is going to be devastating to our ecosystem.”
Commissioner Jim Bunting said the turbines planned for the waters off Ocean City were now expected to be larger than initially indicated.
“They’re going to be 30 miles off and you’re going to see them,” he said.
Commissioner Ted Elder said he’d researched wind farms and had seen a variety of problems associated with them.
“It’s just more negative than it is positive,” he said.
The commissioners agreed to begin sending weekly letters to relevant officials expressing their concerns.
