Second installment of a two-part series

Several environmental groups, including the Washington-based Pamlico-Tar River Foundation, are supporting wind-energy initiatives.

PTRF was involved in a March 7, 2011, communication to President Barack Obama, a letter supporting the development of offshore wind energy along the Atlantic Seaboard.

David. A. Emmerling, PTRF’s executive director, discussed the letter.

“What happens is that one of our collaborating organizations will draft the letter, send it to the groups involved, and I think that there were 122 groups that had signed on from across the area,” he said. “Then, that was sent to the president. So, we helped in drafting the letter, but it didn’t originate with us and we did not send the letter out. We were just one of the co-signers”

Emmerling’s remarks echoed similar support for developing offshore wind energy that others expressed during interviews with the Washington Daily News.

“One of the things that I think from an environmental perspective is that it is important that we look at more environmentally friendly alternatives to provide the energy that our country needs,” he said. “And offshore wind energy provides us one of those alternatives. Wind energy will reduce our dependence on oil and coal and gas for our energy needs.”

Other groups that signed the letter are based in areas ranging from Florida to Vermont. Other North Carolina groups that signed the letter include the Outer Banks chapter of the Surfrider Foundation Surf Rider Outer Banks Chapter, North Carolina Wildlife Federation and the North Carolina League of Conservation Voters.

“Off-shore wind projects should be sited, constructed, and operated in way that seeks to avoid, minimize, and mitigate conflict with other uses, whether fishing, recreation, or other renewable energy generation,” reads a portion of the letter sent to the president. “Your recent Executive Order that establishes the National Ocean Policy, including the Framework for Effective Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning, offers a guide for promoting conservation, science-based decision making and coordination between federal agencies, states, and all other ocean users. Wind Energy development should be coordinated with state and regional coastal, and marine spatial planning efforts, and be done in a manner that is consistent with the goals of your historic National Ocean Policy.”

Opposition

Audra Parker, CEO of the Alliance to Protect the Nantucket Sound, provides a differing viewpoint on the issue.

The alliance is a nonprofit environmental organization dedicated to long-term preservation of the Nantucket Sound. It was formed in 2001 in response to a proposal from Cape Wind Associates to build a wind farm in Nantucket Sound.

Part of the alliance’s mission statement reads: “Our goal is to protect Nantucket Sound in perpetuity through conservation, environmental action, and opposition to inappropriate industrial or commercial development. The Alliance supports formal designation of Nantucket Sound as a marine protected area.”

Parker, noting her group has about 30,000 supporters, spoke about the alliance’s opposition to the project. Parker said a public-comments period regarding construction of the project ended March 10.

“We are opposed to the specific location in Nantucket Sound because of environmental impacts, impacts on fisheries, impacts on historic preservation, navigation safety, aviation and a whole host of public interest values,” she said. “The project is also extremely expensive and will add billions of dollars of unnecessary costs to Massachusetts residents and businesses when there are other clean alternatives available at the fraction of the cost of Cape Wind.”

Parker said Cape Wind Associates needs about 20 different local, state and federal permits to go forward, and it has a number of those permits. It has no authority to begin construction, she said. Parker said there are an estimated 10 or 11 lawsuits č filed against state and federal governments č that target the Cape Wind project.

Parker said Associated Industries of Massachusetts, the largest employer association in Massachusetts, filed a lawsuit with the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to set aside the commonwealth’s approval of a power-purchase agreement between Cape Wind and National Grid, a utilities transmission and distribution entity.

AIM contends Cape Wind negotiated an agreement that sets a dangerous precedent for allowing utilities to negotiate expensive power agreements outside of the competitive bidding process and allocate costs unfairly to commercial and industrial customers.

Parker criticized Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick for “aggressively supporting the project at the expense of his constituents.”

In North Carolina

The N.C. Utilities Commission’s website provide a wealth of information on the Elizabeth City-based Desert Wind Power Project.

A March 10 hearing on the project was held at the Pasquotank County Courthouse in Elizabeth City. Nine speakers addressed Atlantic Wind LLC’s application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity to construct a 300 megawatt wind-turbine generating facility in Perquimans and Pasquotank counties. Atlantic Wind is a subsidiary of Iberdrola Renewables.

Henry C. Campen Jr. and Katherine E. Ross with Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP represented Atlantic Wind at the hearing.

Dianna Downey, staff attorney for the commission, said she represented “the using and consuming public.”

Several area residents voice support for the project. Officials with the N.C. Department of Commerce, the Northeast Commission and the Albemarle Economic Development Commission offered their support to the project.

Manny Medeiros, a Kill Devil Hills resident, offered criticism of the project.

“Now, while I’m told that ratepayers are not being asked to pick up the tab at this particular project at this particular time, one wonders if we’re seeing the camel’s nose under the tent, creating a potential risk to ratepayers and taxpayers for usual cost increases or usual project underperformances or from delays that might occur concerning power transmission, for example,” a part of Medeiros’ testimony reads

Medeiros went further.

“One lawyer who handles energy litigation has said that investing money in wind energy is like buying expensive food that’s low in calories. Everyday you spend more money and you lose more weight, and as time goes on, you have less money, and less energy, and eventually you end in either the hospital or the poor house.”

Another hearing on the project will be held April 5 in Raleigh.