Posted by admin in Green Articles, Green Leaders, featured | 0 Comments
America’s first offshore wind farm will soon catch a Cape Cod breeze
Warning: strip_tags() expects parameter 1 to be string, array given in /home/propelea/public_html/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 631
From solar-powered lamps to battery-operated cars, green energy initiatives are taking America by storm. Now, a good storm may come in handy for the latest eco-friendly energy project. The New York Times reports that offshore wind farms will be built off the coast of Cape Cod.
At least half a dozen offshore wind farms have been proposed for various locations along the East Coast and near the Great Lakes. Now, after nine years, the federal government has approved of plans to build a wind farm off the Cape Cod coast. Cape Wind will boost the nascent offshore wind industry. The decision is being favorably received by renewable-energy suppliers, whose industry has been hurt by the recent recession and lacking climate and energy legislation.
The Times reports this industry has already taken off in Europe and China, where strong breezes provide the energy to power countless homes and businesses. The Cape project, which will hopefully start operating in 2012, is supposedly one of many that will be approved in the coming months.
The Washington Post says there are at least 11 other U.S. offshore wind projects in development, and Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs Senator Ian Bowles is reportedly pleased to get the national movement started near Cape Cod.
Cape Wind turbines will lie in Nantucket Sound, about five miles from the shoreline. The farm will cover 24 square miles (roughly the size of Manhattan). The tips of the blades will stand 440 feet above water level, reports the New York Times.
These massive turbines are predicted to produce 468 megawatts of electricity once they get started – enough to power roughly 150,000 homes – and this is just the beginning. As Bowles told the Washington Post, "we’re just getting started."
Related Posts
