Sustainable Development

Auwahi Wind Farm Opens in Maui, HI – Clean Electricity for 10,000 Homes

Right before the end of the year, Sempra U.S. Gas & Power and BP Wind Energy sneaked in the commercial opening of the 21 megawatt Auwahi Wind facility on the Ulupalakua Ranch in Maui, Hawaii.

Auwahi Wind Farm in Maui, Hawaii

Auwahi Wind Farm in Maui, Hawaii (photo – .semprausgp.com)

The power from Auwahi Wind has been sold to Maui Electric Company (MECO) under a 20-year contract. The turbines will generate enough clean electricity to power about 10,000 typical Maui homes.

“We are very pleased to complete construction of Auwahi Wind both on time and on budget,” said Jeffrey W. Martin, president and CEO of Sempra U.S. Gas & Power. “The addition of new, clean energy from our project will be a boost for Maui’s infrastructure and will help Hawaii achieve its goal of securing 40 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2030. This project could not have been built without the enthusiastic support of the local community, the Ulupalakua Ranch and neighbors who recognize the importance of sustainable energy.”

An important component of the project is a 10 MW battery capable of storing 4.4 megawatt-hours of power. Energy from the battery will help regulate and sustain power to the MECO grid during light wind conditions.

“It was just seven months ago that the groundbreaking for Auwahi Wind was held and today we’re celebrating its completion,” said former Hawaii Lt. Gov. Brian Schatz, who has just been appointed as the U.S. Senator for Hawaii. “What a great way to end a banner year for wind energy in Hawaii. This project is an important step toward energy self-sufficiency and has the added benefit of helping Ulupalakua remain financially viable and preserve a ranching lifestyle on Maui and protect open space and habitat for native plants and animals.”

Construction of the wind farm on Ulupalakua Ranch began in March 2012, and involved more than 180 workers. The high-speed construction within seven months and the opening of the wind farm a few days before the year-end is likely because there was doubt about whether the wind energy tax credit (PTC) would be extended.

“BP and Sempra U.S. Gas & Power have been terrific partners,” said Sumner Erdman, president of Ulupalakua Ranch. “The Auwahi project protects the environment, maximizes wind as a renewable energy resource and allows us to maintain the rural open space and grazing areas necessary for us to raise our cattle.”

Congress Extends Wind Energy Tax Credits for One More Year

The U.S. wind energy industry’s 75,000 workers are celebrating the extension of the wind energy Production Tax Credit (PTC) and Investment Tax Credits for community and offshore projects that was approved by the United States Congress as part of the fiscal cliff deal.

Wind turbines in Colorado

Wind turbines in Colorado (photo – nrel.gov)

The PTC was slated to expire at the end of the year in 2012, and its loss was forecasted to cause a reduction of 37,000 jobs in the wind energy industry.

Congress not only extended the tax credits for a year, but also modified their definition to cover all wind projects that start construction in 2013. Companies that manufacture wind turbines and install them sought that definition to allow for the 18-24 months it takes to develop a new wind farm.

Reactions to the PTC extension below:-

“On behalf of all the people working in wind energy manufacturing facilities, their families, and all the communities that benefit, we thank President Obama and all the Members of the House and Senate who had the foresight to extend this successful policy, so wind projects can continue to be developed in 2013 and 2014,” said Denise Bode, outgoing CEO of American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).

“Not only did Congress extend the Production Tax Credit, it also extended the Investment Tax Credit and Bonus Depreciation. In essence, US Treasury is paying for 30% of the capital costs of a wind project in the US. This amount is hugely significant and infers that the United States is still the No. 1 place in the world to be building, owning and operating wind and solar facilities.” – Jeff Ciachurski, president of Vancouver, British Columbia-based Western Wind Energy

“Now we can continue to provide America with more clean, affordable, homegrown energy, and keep growing a new manufacturing sector that’s now making nearly 70 percent of our wind turbines in the U.S.A.” – Rob Gramlich, AWEA’s new interim CEO.

“Although this deal is not perfect, I am glad my colleagues have acknowledged what I have spoken about regularly on the Senate floor: Wind energy creates jobs and benefits every American. I look forward to continuing to lead the fight for our wind industry and an all-of-the-above energy policy in 2013.” – Colorado Senator Mark Udall.

“We applaud the wind industry and Congress for working together on an extension of the production tax credit. This will give manufacturers, developers and others in the industry the confidence to move forward with new projects. We also continue to encourage Congress to pass a federal energy policy that provides investors and businesses with certainty and levels the playing field among all power sources.” – Phyllis Cuttino, director of Clean Energy Program, Pew Environment Group

“The Sierra Club thanks President Obama and Senators Reid and Baucus for fighting to include an extension of the Wind Production Tax Credit in the final budget package. The extension of this critical tax incentive will put thousands of Americans back to work, and will ensure that the wind industry continues to provide clean, renewable energy to our homes and businesses.” – Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club

“Vestas commends the President and Congress for having agreed to extend the PTC, which confirms the bipartisan U.S. commitment to a balanced, clean-energy portfolio.” – Vestas president and CEO Ditlev Engel.

Turbine manufacturer Vestas’ statement included the caveat that there will be a significant reduction in 2013 wind energy installations relative to previous years due to the late timing of the extension. Vestas had already reduced the company’s workforce in 2012 based on the PTC not being extended.

Build Smart NY to Improve State Govt Energy Efficiency by 20%

New York State agencies have been ordered to increase energy efficiency in state buildings by 20 percent in seven years by implementing an initiative called Build Smart NY.

Build Smart NY

Build Smart NY (photo – buildsmart.ny.gov)

The Build Smart NY initiative will save millions of taxpayer dollars and create thousands of jobs while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by more than eight million metric tons – the equivalent of taking a million cars off the road for a year.

NY Governor Andrew M. Cuomo noted that most of the projects will pay for themselves as their energy savings will cover their costs, making this initiative “a financial and environmental win-win for New Yorkers.”

The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has committed to provide $450 million in low-cost financing for this initiative.

Build Smart NY will use state building energy data to prioritize projects that will deliver the greatest energy savings per dollar spent.

The largest and most inefficient buildings will be addressed first and undergo comprehensive whole-building improvements. Building improvements include measures like new lighting fixtures and controls, heating, ventilating and air-conditioning systems, electric motors, and automated energy management systems.

NY Works is designed to expedite select projects with maximum economic impact, allowing them to begin as soon as possible and reduce project costs by hundreds of millions of dollars. Similarly, Build Smart NY will accelerate projects that produce the greatest savings and coordinate all spending.

Data for this project has already been collected on over 180 million square feet of buildings and campuses – about 95 percent of the State’s building stock, and work has started on 30 million square feet of real estate.

A new microsite (buildsmart.ny.gov) was launched as a web platform in support of this initiative. The site offers a searchable database of state buildings with ongoing energy efficiency projects, with details of project costs, energy savings, GHG reductions, and other accountability and performance updates. As a bonus, the setup of the microsite provided work for an NY startup called Honest Buildings, Inc.

“New York State’s investment in cost-effective energy efficiency upgrades to the state’s buildings will create thousands of jobs for local businesses, while also helping to jumpstart a private sector market for efficiency renovations like this in communities across the state,” said Greg Hale, director of Efficiency Finance at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

“We know what a tremendous impact this initiative will have when implemented in buildings statewide, because OGS has seen the results of the energy efficiency programs we have put into place in state office buildings,” said RoAnn Destito, Commissioner, Office of General Services.

Lyon County Lands Bill to Create Wilderness Area and 800 Jobs in Nevada

Nevada Senators Harry Reid and Dean Heller jointly introduced the Lyon County Economic Development and Conservation Act of 2012 in the U.S. Senate. This bill will designate the Wovoka Wilderness area, while allowing the City of Yerington, NV to work with Nevada Copper Corp. (TSX: NCU) to expand its mining operation, resulting in 800 new mining jobs and 500 construction jobs in the area

Nevada Copper Pumpkin Hollow project

Nevada Copper Pumpkin Hollow project (photo – nevadacopper.com)

Senator Reid said it was a bill that was going to meet “the needs of modern day Nevada.” This bill is an amended version of the first bill introduced earlier this year.

The compromise changes included make it a sustainable model that takes into account the concerns of wilderness advocacy groups, ranchers and other residents, and the mining industry.

“My father was a miner. I’ve worked in the mines. I know how important mining has always been for the state of Nevada, and for the first time in a long time Yerington is going to benefit from mining,” added Senator Reid. “I am very happy to be part of this legislation which will create lots of jobs in Lyon County, which are so desperately needed.”

The City of Yerington will partner with Nevada Copper to develop roughly 12,500 acres of land surrounding the Pumpkin Hollow project site, which is estimated to create 800 mining jobs and 500 construction jobs.

Pumpkin Hollow is a high grade IOCG deposit within a porphyry copper rich district with a mineral inventory of over 24 billion pounds of copper. It also happens to be an excellent site for mining based on the ease of permitting and availability of power, rail, roads, labor, etc.

“Lyon County has the highest unemployment rate in the state and this legislation will bring more than 800 jobs to the area. Mining is a critical component of Nevada’s economy and we are fortunate to have resources in our own backyard for economic development,” said Senator Dean Heller.

The proposed Wovoka wilderness area is approximately 48,000 acres and withdraws from mining and development additional land with sensitive cultural resources. Wovoka has invaluable prehistoric cultural and contains landscapes and wildlife habitat that have historically been a huge attraction for hunters, outdoors enthusiasts, and explorers.

Crafting the bill required an endless series of meetings, discussions, and site visits with and between Lyon County officials, the City of Yerington, Nevada Copper, wilderness groups, and the local residents.

“We are very pleased that this revised bill has now been introduced and can be acted upon at any time. There are several critical bills being considered in the lame duck session of Congress, and high priority actions like this are often combined for passage before Congress adjourns,” said Timothy M. Dyhr, vice president, Environment and External Relations, Nevada Copper.

Read more about the Lyon County Lands Bill – S.3701

Wind Energy Industry Booms Before the New Year Bust

As the clock strikes midnight on Dec 31, 2012, more than 37,000 people in the U.S. wind energy industry will have to start looking for new careers. The industry is all set to lose half of its 75,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2013 if Congress does not renew the Wind Production Tax Credit (PTC) which expires at the end of this year.

Save USA wind manufacturing jobs

Save USA wind manufacturing jobs (photo – awea.org)

A lot of customers have been rushing to get their wind turbines installed before the end of the year to ensure they get the PTC, and this has ironically resulted in a huge boom in the industry even as it faces an existential crisis.

New wind capacity as of Nov 30 hit 6,519 megawatts – more than the natural gas additions and a lot more than coal additions. New Energy Finance estimates the amount of wind capacity added this year could reach 12 gigawatts.

If Congress does not renew the PTC, the estimate for next year is 1.5 gigawatts – a staggering 88 percent drop that will just about kill the 500 factories which are supplying the wind industry.

Thousands of jobs have already been lost this year, and new investments are at a complete standstill while Congress tilts at the windmills.

The largest corporate consumers of renewable power have written to Congress. Another letter was sent by 118 conservation groups. The Western Governors’ Association sent a letter, and so did a coalition of lieutenant governors.

A slew of newspapers from the Los Angeles Times to the Canon City (Colo.) Daily Record and the Scranton (Pa.) Times-Tribune have published editorial endorsements asking Congress to renew the PTC.

With the clock ticking down on their jobs, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) finally had to resort to putting little kids of wind industry workers in a video to implore Congress not to take away their jobs.

Matt and Sarah Allsup and their children Tiffany, Malia, Dylan, Lucas and Kaidee are shown in front of the Capitol. “Behind the wind mills, there’s families,” says 20-year-old Tiffany Allsup. “And behind those families, we need jobs.”

The U.S. wind industry supported more than 75,000 jobs in 2011. A full 30,000 of those jobs were in manufacturing. There are nearly 500 U.S. factories currently supplying the wind industry. A recent assessment by the U.S. Department of Energy concluded that the U.S. could supply 20 percent of the nation’s electricity needs through wind by 2030.

That would support roughly 500,000 jobs in the U.S., with an annual average of more than 150,000 workers directly employed by the wind industry. It would also result in energy-related cost savings ranging from $100 billion to $250 billion through 2030.

NY Announces $250M Funding for Renewable Energy Generation Projects

New York is making $250 million available for renewable energy generation projects. The funding will be administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) through the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS).

High Sheldon Wind Farm in Sheldon, NY

High Sheldon Wind Farm in Sheldon, NY (photo – nyserda.ny.gov)

The targeted recipients will be medium and large scale clean power generation projects that use wind, hydroelectric, solar, biomass or other clean-energy resources.

“The RPS program has allowed New York State to expand its clean-energy economy by attracting private investment in these medium and large renewable energy projects, which are creating jobs and providing environmental benefits for local communities,” said Francis J. Murray Jr., president and CEO, NYSERDA.

RPS is a policy that seeks to increase the proportion of renewable electricity used by retail customers. RPS energy targets fall into three groups:-

-           Main Tier or large scale generators that sell power to the wholesale grid or generate power for onsite use;

-          Customer-sited tier which includes small scaled generators such as a photovoltaic (PV) system on a residence; and

-          Other Market Activities, which includes individuals and businesses that choose to pay a premium on their electricity bill to support renewable energy and state agencies.

“Developing renewable resources, along with our energy efficiency efforts, provides our best hope toward ending dependency on fossil fuels, improving regional economies, reducing harmful emissions, and enabling all of us to gain greater control of our energy future,” said Public Service Commission chairman Garry Brown. “The Renewable Portfolio Standard ensures that the success of the state’s renewable energy program continues unabated.”

Under the RPS program, NYSERDA has current Main Tier contracts with 54 large-scale renewable electricity generators. These projects include two biomass facilities, 10 landfill biogas operations, 25 hydroelectric facilities, and 17 wind farms.

The power generated from these projects is expected to provide enough clean power for more than 650,000 homes per year. Over the next 20 years, the direct benefits from the projects currently within the RPS program are expected to approach $2.4 billion, and the effects on the broader economy are estimated at more than $4.9 billion.

RPS is a critical component of New York’s Energy Highway Blueprint that will upgrade and modernize New York’s aging energy infrastructure.

Soitec Solar Plant Opens in San Diego with 450 Jobs

Kish Rajan, director of the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz) announced the opening of Soitec’s $150 million North American headquarters and solar manufacturing facility in San Diego, CA.

Opening of Soitec solar plant in San Diego, CA

Opening of Soitec solar plant in San Diego, CA (photo – soitec.com)

The factory is equipped with a state-of-the-art automated production line for CPV modules meant for the U.S. renewable energy market, and will employ 450 people at full capacity. At the peak of construction, over 280 people were employed on the site.

“This project demonstrates the long term commitment of our state and local partners to ensure Soitec opened their first U.S. manufacturing facility in California,” said director Rajan. “Not only will Soitec employ 450 Californians, they are contributing to the state’s goal of increasing our renewable energy portfolio.”

GO-Biz staff has been meeting with Soitec since 2009 to locate the headquarters and manufacturing facility in San Diego. Soitec acquired the 176,000 sq ft manufacturing center on 14.8 acres of land in December 2011.

Soitec received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for power purchase agreements totaling more than 300 MWp in 2011. The CPUC this year approved 155 MW of electricity purchase between Soitec and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E).

These projects, which are in various stages of development, will use Soitec’s fifth generation of CVP systems. Each 28 kW system will include 12 modules manufactured in San Diego. The first module was produced in October, and the first phase (140 MWp) of the production line is now operational. The factory has been designed to reach 280 MWp in capacity at full production.

“By producing high volumes of CPV modules at this facility, we are now able to help California meet its renewable energy goals and further support the US market,” said André-Jacques Auberton-Hervé, chairman and CEO of Soitec. “We have also installed CPV systems in 14 countries on four continents. I am very pleased and honored that we can now offer the full benefits of this know-how in meeting US needs.”

The project also received support from the City of San Diego.

“I want to congratulate Soitec on the opening of its factory here in San Diego, and thank the many organizations and individuals who worked together to help bring the company to San Diego,” commented San Diego Mayor Bob Filner. “The city, CleanTECH San Diego, the Regional EDC, UC San Diego and SDG&E combined their resources to show Soitec that San Diego was as enticing as any other region in the desert Southwest, and as a result Soitec chose to bring 450 new jobs to San Diego and invest in the future of their company here because of our green credentials and our leadership in renewable energy.”

Bernin, France-based Soitec is a $1.2 billion semiconductor manufacturer with 1,200 employees working in plants and R&D centers in France, Singapore, Germany, and the United States.

UNDP Report – Catalyzing Ocean Finance

At the official launch of a report on how strengthened markets and policies can better protect oceans and coastal areas, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and Global Environment Facility (GEF) experts gathered in Washington, D.C. warned that concrete actions must begin now to mitigate or reverse grave threats to the world’s oceans.

Catalyzing Ocean Finance - UNDP report

Catalyzing Ocean Finance – UNDP report (photo – undp.org)

Marine and coastal resources directly provide at least $3 trillion annually in global economic output, including food, minerals, and oil and gas.

“Oceans are an integral part of life on earth, regulating our climate and producing oxygen for the planet, yet they are under serious threat due to pollution, over-exploitation, habitat loss, invasive species, and climate change,” said Andrew Hudson, Head of UNDP’s Water & Ocean Governance Program. “We need to improve the way we manage the oceans, before the damage is irreversible.”

The report, titled “Catalysing Ocean Finance: Transforming Markets to Restore & Protect the Global Ocean,” demonstrates that far from being an intractable problem, sustainable ocean management could become a successful legacy of today’s generation of decision-makers.

The report is broken up into two sections or volumes. Volume I deals with the past, including the causes of ocean degradation and the lessons learned over the past two decades.

It hammers home the point that accelerating degradation of the marine environment stems primarily from market and policy failures, leading to the over-exploitation of fisheries, skyrocketing hypoxic (low oxygen) zones in coastal areas, continued introductions of destructive alien species, and increased ocean acidification.

Volume II includes methodologies and tools to create enabling environments to leverage environmental investment. Several case studies are provided, from reversing the Black Sea’s enormous “dead zone,” to reducing the risk from invasive species in ship ballast water, and moving forty percent of the world’s tuna fisheries in the Pacific towards sustainability.

Lastly, the report provides an estimate of the costs of scaling up the suite of UNDO-GEF ocean strategic planning tools at a global level to address key ocean threats comprehensively.

To sum it up, the report estimates that an initial public investment of $5 billion over the next ten to twenty years – could be sufficient to catalyze several hundred billion dollars of public and private invest­ment, thereby fostering global transformation of ocean markets towards sustainability.

Read the full “Catalysing Ocean Finance” UNDP-GEF report – Volume I and Volume II (pdf)

Drax Biomass to Invest $120M in Louisiana for Wood Pellet Facility

Drax Biomass International Inc. CEO Chuck Davis and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal announced a more than $120 million investment by the company in Louisiana.

Wood pellets

Wood pellets (photo – Tom Bruton/Brutontom@wikipedia)

Drax Biomass plans to build a wood pellet facility in Bastrop, Morehouse Parish. They will also be adding a storage-and-shipping facility at the Port of Greater Baton Rouge.

Drax will ship wood pellets formed in Morehouse Parish to its U.K. energy facilities for use in generating renewable power. Burlington, Mass.-based Drax Biomass International Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of U.K. utility provider Drax Group plc.

The project will create 63 new direct jobs, with 47 of the jobs located at the Bastrop wood pellet facility and 16 jobs at the shipping facility in Port Allen near Baton Rouge. Drax Biomass also expects to generate 250 construction jobs at the peak of the yearlong building phase.

The Louisiana Economic Development (LED) estimates the project will result in an additional 143 indirect jobs in the state.Drax is additionally planning to build a wood pellet production facility in Gloster, Mississippi that will create 45 direct jobs.

With 169,000 acres of timberland as a renewable resource hub in Morehouse Parish, Drax also will draw on forestry products within a 50-mile radius of its wood pellet facility, to be located 10 miles north of Bastrop in the Beekman community.

The project will tap private and industrial landowners who manage sustainable forests in the region, using logs and residual forest products that will be sized and dried before being pelletized at the Drax plant. The pellets will be further sized and conditioned for transport to the U.K. via bulk cargo ships.

“This is an exciting step for us,” said Drax CEO Chuck Davis. “With Louisiana’s support, we are looking forward to moving these projects through development and into construction during the first part of 2013. Drax Biomass is focused on building and operating clean, safe manufacturing facilities that will support local economies, create long-term jobs, and interface with regional forest industries.”

The state began discussions with Drax in January 2012 about its plans for wood pellet facility. To secure the project, the state offered Drax a custom incentive package that will include a $1.7 million Economic Development Loan Program commitment that won’t require repayment if the company meets payroll performance obligations.

Drax will receive workforce training services, and is expected to utilize Louisiana’s Quality Jobs and Industrial Tax Exemption program incentives.

“We appreciate the investment that Drax Biomass is making in our parish,” said CEO Kay King of the Morehouse Economic Development Corporation. “The plant will create not only jobs in our parish but sustain the forestry industry in our region. Developments of this size are always a team effort and there have been many dedicated people working at the state and local level to make this happen. It has been a pleasure for our organization to be involved in this process.”

Access to timber and deep water ports seem to make Morehouse Parish an ideal cluster for this wood chipping and shipping to Europe business. In April 2010, Point Bio Energy LLC had announced it would locate a $124 million manufacturing facility at the Port of Greater Baton Rouge to produce wood pellets.

Point Bio had searched nationwide for the right site to launch its new operation. Access to timber, however, wasn’t the only requirement. The company also wanted close proximity to deepwater ports.

“There were very few places like South Louisiana,” said Point Bio CEO Bill New. “Transportation for us was primary. It’s ideal when you can bring the forest to the port without double handling it. It keeps costs down for everyone.”

Not to mention that the permitting process for wood pellet operations at the Port has already been streamlined so that operators can get air permits without public hearings.

The best part, however, is that the company’s own carbon footprint can be reduced by using its own wood waste materials to help power the operation.

Hiring for the new Drax Biomass facility in Louisiana will begin as the construction phase nears completion, estimated to be early in 2014.

Offshore Wind Developers Sign Agreement with Environmental Groups

The sustainable development of offshore wind farms producing clean and renewable energy got a big boost with the signing of a voluntary agreement between wind power developers and environmental groups trying to protect marine life.

Offshore wind farm

Offshore wind farm (photo – pnnl.gov)

Specifically, the agreement was signed to protect the North Atlantic right whale when it migrates through the mid-Atlantic.

The agreement is limited in its scope to site assessment and characterization activities over the next four years necessary for offshore wind energy development in the mid-Atlantic Wind Energy Areas.

It does not apply to the subsequent construction and operations phases, nor does it imply or suggest what measures may be appropriate at the construction and operations phases.

The wind power companies involved are the Providence, Rhode Island-based Deepwater Wind; Boston, Massachusetts-based Energy Management, Inc.; and Bluewater Wind Delaware LLC.

The environmental organizations party to the agreement include the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC); Sierra Club; Environment America; National Wildlife Federation; International Fund for Animal Welfare; Conservation Law Foundation; Oceana; Southern Environmental Law Center; and New England Aquarium.

Statements from parties to the agreement:-

“This first-of-a-kind agreement will help industry leaders more quickly capture the enormous potential of wind blowing off the Mid-Atlantic coast, while protecting a critically endangered species at the same time,” said NRDC Clean Energy Counsel Kit Kennedy.

“Offshore wind energy is a critical component to our nation’s long-term energy security. We have an enormous energy resource right off of our coast and developing it will help preserve our environment and protect species like the North Atlantic right whale,” said Jeffrey Grybowski, CEO of Deepwater Wind.

“We share with these leading developers a common objective to get offshore wind up and running as quickly as possible as a key tool in the fight against climate change. It’s a win-win agreement that both enhances protection for critically endangered right whales and advances offshore wind’s progress in the Atlantic,” said Tricia K. Jedele, vice president and director of Conservation Law Foundation Rhode Island.

“Climate change is the single biggest threat to wildlife today and we urgently need to transition to clean energy sources like offshore wind. This collaborative agreement between key ocean stakeholders helps ensure these Atlantic offshore wind industry leaders can develop while protecting critically endangered right whales,” said Justin Allegro, renewable energy and wildlife program manager at the National Wildlife Federation.

The agreement includes the following main restrictions or policy changes:-

-          Seasonal restrictions on sub-bottom profiling and on pile driving for meteorological tower installation;

-          Vessel speed restriction;

-          Use of noise attenuation and source level reduction technology to reduce sound during meteorological tower construction;

-          Establishment of exclusion zone; and

-          Real-time monitoring for whale activity in the site area.

You can see more details in the signed agreement that was sent to the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s Office of Renewable Energy.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25  Scroll to top