American Wind Energy Association (AWEA)
Statement on Cape Wind

December 3, 2004
(PDF Version)

Offshore wind energy may soon provide an important source of clean electricity for the U.S., as it has in Europe for years. The release of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Draft
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)/Environmental Impact Report (EIR) clearly demonstrates the potential economic and environmental benefits of an offshore wind project in the U.S., the Cape Wind Energy Project to be located off of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

AWEA calls attention to the positive findings of the draft EIS, and strongly supports the Cape Wind Energy Project moving forward. Using a standard process developed by the Corps to review a wide range of proposed projects, the Corps found that the Cape Wind Energy Project would:

• create hundreds of jobs during the construction and operations phases;

• reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 1 million tons each year; and

• reduce reliance on other fuels such as natural gas, saving ratepayers over $25 million per year.

Careful analysis by the Corps also indicates that many of the earlier concerns raised about potential impacts - on fishing, on navigation, on bird populations – will not be significant. “Americans are now faced with real choices about energy – the question is not wind energy or nothing,” says Randall Swisher, Executive Director of the American Wind Energy Association. “With such important benefits and such minimal impacts, the Cape Wind Energy Project should move forward. Tapping into the offshore wind resource is an important piece of continued clean energy growth.”

The Corps explored many reservations voiced about the Cape Wind Energy Project, and found the project impacts to be minimal. For example, the Corps found little to no interference with fishing activity due to the wide spacing between the proposed turbines. The sizeable benefits reported include:

• $21.8 million more in economic output from Barnstable County, Massachusetts;

• a significant boost to Massachusetts’ efforts to reduce ozone;

• improved air quality downwind at places like Acadia National Park in Maine;

• cumulative benefits to human health on the order of $53 million in annual savings; and,

• lower regional electricity prices saving $25 million annually.

The Cape Wind project, as well Long Island Power Authority’s proposed offshore project,
provide the first opportunities to champion offshore wind energy development in the U.S.
Clearly, notwithstanding opponents' persistent efforts to create controversy and cloud the issue, the Cape Wind Energy Project has come through one of the most stringent examinations of any energy project with flying colors. It is time for debate to end and for the people of Massachusetts to experience the clean, renewable benefits of wind energy.

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AWEA, formed in 1974, is the national trade association of the U.S. wind energy industry. The association’s membership includes turbine manufacturers, wind project developers, utilities, academicians, and interested individuals. More information on wind energy is available at the AWEA web site: www.awea.org

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