FreeLists / va-bird / [va-bird] Wind farms proposed for Northampton County

[Phoebetria@xxxxxxx]

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Hello to all,

A New York company, Winergy LLC, is seeking to erect a massive offshore wind=
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farm east of Smith Island, Northampton County.  As many of you know, this=20
corridor of ocean is a major highway for bird traffic in and out of the mout=
h=20
of the Chesapeake Bay, as well as for migrants of many kinds.  The number of=
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gannets, scoters, loons, cormorants, gulls, terns, and other seabirds that=20
use this area is staggering, as so many of you have witnessed.  There is=20
perhaps no area like it in North America.=20

The likelihood of massive avian strikes (=3Dmortality) in this very corridor=
,=20
especially during inclement or changing weather, is too great to support thi=
s=20
project.  I personally support wind power but oppose this siting, and I hope=
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that others will see fit to send letters to the Army Corps of Engineers to=20
oppose it as well. =20

Would some of you be so good as to bring it up with your respective bird=20
clubs and Audubon societies, and draft letters to Mr. Rick Henderson, Norfol=
k=20
District COE, CENAO-TS-G, 803 Front St., Norfolk, VA 23510-1096?

I know that VA-Bird is not a forum for extended discussions of conservation=20
issues, and so I would ask that replies to this posting be private, so as no=
t=20
to clutter the listserv.   Two items follow: first, a sample letter of=20
opposition; second, a newspaper article by Scott Harper with the particulars=
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of the project as it stands now. =20

Thanks. =20
Ned Brinkley
Cape Charles, Virginia

SAMPLE LETTER OF OPPOSITION

Reference:  AOI: Off Shore Wind Farm, east of Smith Island, Northampton=20
County, VA, by Winergy LLC=20

While we favor renewable and sustainable energy sources, we must question=20
those that pose a risk to wildlife or wildlife habitats.  It is unclear what=
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impacts the proposed wind turbine farm would have on seabirds, neotropical=20
and temperate avian migrants, benthic organisms, or fish populations.  We ar=
e=20
unwilling, without sufficient data, to agree that the area poses no risk to=20
marine mammals.
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There are a number of questions that arise from the project which, we feel,=20
require the analytical level of an Environmental Impact Statement to address=
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 For example, it is unclear how the generated energy will be transmitted and=
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what will be the land-based infrastructure necessary for transmission (or=20
storage of?) the electricity.  Will this have any impact on mainland=20
habitats?  What are the footprints for this infrastructure?  What are the=20
economic benefits of this project and who are the beneficiaries?  Given that=
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other projects often carry mitigation requirements, are there any with this=20
one, especially where the land-based infrastructure is concerned? =20

The region including the alternatives proposed for project has been declared=
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a World Important Bird Area by the American Bird Conservancy.  The proposed=20
site for the wind farm is especially sensitive, as it is the corridor by=20
which hundreds of thousands of seabirds transit in and out of the Chesapeake=
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Bay, especially during migration and during periods of changing weather. =20
Birds known to migrate through the area in significant numbers include:

o Peregrine Falcon -- Only recently downlisted from threatened status under=20
the Endangered Species Act; satellite telemetry indicates this species=20
migrates both offshore and along the coast in large numbers each fall.=20
o Merlin -- A small dark falcon known to migrate in pre-dawn darkness along=20
the coast and offshore.
o Tundra Swan -- Fall migration is often at night and in very large numbers=20
in the proposed area.
o Surf and Black Scoters -- Very large flocks migrate from 0.5 to several=20
miles offshore in the fall.
o Northern Gannet -- Thousands hunt for fish in the proposed project area=20
each winter.=20
o Red-throated Loon -- A massive portion of the Atlantic-wintering populatio=
n=20
passes through the area en route to the Carolinas in the fall, as well as=20
passing north through here in the spring.  The same is true for similar=20
numbers of Red-breasted Mergansers and Double-crested Cormorants. =20
o Dozens of other seabird and waterfowl species both migrate and feed in the=
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proposed area.=20
o A precise mean estimate of annual passerine migrant numbers found in the=20
project area is not known, but it is certainly in the millions and probably=20
in the tens of millions each fall.  These birds migrate at night and, during=
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frontal passages, =E2=80=9Cfall out=E2=80=9D in very large numbers in Northa=
mpton County. =20
Radar studies show many of these birds are offshore (having "overmigrated,"=20
that is, overshot the coastline) and could easily be killed by turbines as=20
they, reluctant to cross the Bay, make landfall in pre-dawn darkness, often=20
from the offshore corridor being considered for the wind farm.  Each fall,=20
large numbers of these migrants are seen resting on the Chesapeake Light=20
Tower 14 miles east of Cape Henry.     =20

We strongly urge the agencies involved to closely examine the issue of the=20
potential negative impact on bird migration of the proposed wind turbine=20
project before allowing any permits for construction.  An EIS is the best wa=
y=20
for this impact to be assessed.  Since the Cape Charles area is a well=20
documented funnel for large numbers of migrant birds, it behooves everyone=20
involved with the approval process for this project to address the question=20
of impact on these significant numbers of avian migrants.

Thank you for your consideration of this matter.

Sincerely [President, Bird Club X]

Newspaper article by SCOTT HARPER, The Virginian-Pilot
 December 3, 2002=20

NORFOLK -- A New York company hoping to build a large wind-energy farm off=20
Virginia's Eastern Shore is changing its plans in response to concerns raise=
d=20
by the military.=20

The company, Winergy LLC, which creates pollution-free energy, has dropped=20
its preferred site in the Atlantic Ocean off Metompkin Island in Accomack=20
County, and instead will seek government approval to construct a slightly=20
smaller project off Smith Island in Northampton County, according to=20
regulators and company officials.=20

The new locale is closer to shore (three miles instead of five miles),=20
slightly farther south on the Eastern Shore peninsula, and near a national=20
wildlife refuge that attracts thousands of migratory birds and waterfowl.=20
The shift in plans was made just before Thanksgiving, after military=20
personnel told regulators at the Army Corps of Engineers that the Metompkin=20
site ``had a lot of military applications'' and should remain undisturbed,=20
said Bob Link, Winergy's compliance officer.=20

``We certainly didn't want to interfere with whatever they do out there, so=20
we're going ahead with our Smith Island proposal,'' Link said Monday.=20

The change can be seen as a setback for Winergy, since Smith Island was last=
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on its list of four prospective locations for an alternative energy wind=20
farm. Still, Link was upbeat about securing myriad permits to install=20
windmills atop platforms dug into the bottom of the ocean.=20

The Smith Island option would involve building 221 windmills across 45 squar=
e=20
miles of open federal waters, compared with 271 windmills on 57 square miles=
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at Metompkin.=20

Each of the metal structures with whirling blades would stand at least 358=20
feet tall and cost about $3.5 million apiece. Winergy officials have said=20
they expect to spend about $900 million to complete the project, including=20
the expense of connecting to transmission lines on land.=20

Since Winergy unveiled its plans in Virginia last month, reaction has been=20
mixed. The Army Corps of Engineers in Norfolk received about 50 written=20
comments on the proposal -- some in favor, some not.=20

Those expressing concerns included energy consultants and wildlife experts;=20
those who liked the idea included local officials, business owners and=20
environmentalists.=20

Offshore wind farms do not exist today in America. The first one began=20
churning air into electricity in 1992 off the coast of Denmark. Others have=20
cropped up in several more European countries, including =05England and=20
Ireland.=20
Winergy, based in Shirley, N.Y., also is proposing wind farms on the Atlanti=
c=20
coast off New York and New Jersey. Link said the Virginia project is being=20
pursued first, with regulators in the other two states watching how issues=20
are settled here.=20

He said the company expects the permitting process to take about three years=
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If approved, construction would take another year. Winergy is not sure where=
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or to whom it would sell its electricity, but would expect several buyers in=
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the new deregulated world of electric utilities in Virginia.=20

Link said that if all its windmills are allowed to operate, Winergy could=20
supply enough pollution-free electricity to fuel all of Washington, D.C.=20

Reach Scott Harper at 446-2340 or sharper@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx =20













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