Massachusetts offshore wind project clears environmental hurdle

Charlottesville, Virginia (Platts)--30Mar2007

The 420-MW Cape Wind project, the first offshore wind farm proposed in
the US, has cleared a key hurdle after Massachusetts officials approved its
final environmental impact report.

Announced Friday by Ian Bowles, the state's environmental affairs
secretary, the decision is considered to be gatekeeper event, since it allows
the Nantucket Sound project to move forward with other state permits.
Information in the report will be used as the basis for other approvals.

The decision also marks a change in attitude toward the project, which
has been struggling to get state and federal approval for six years. Recently
elected Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick supports Cape Wind, while his
predecessor Mitt Romney opposed the 130-turbine project.

Bowles said the project "adequately and properly complies" with the
Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) and "is expressly consistent
with and will significantly advance" Massachusetts' energy goals.

The project, however, still requires federal approval, and is under
review before US Minerals Management Service. The federal review will focus on
the turbines, which are in 25 square miles of federal waters, while the state
review focused more on the cables that run underneath three miles of state
waters to connect with the New England grid in Yarmouth, Massachusetts.

"My obligation under MEPA is to ensure that the impacts of construction
and operation of the portions of the project within Massachusetts'
jurisdiction have been adequately avoided, minimized, and mitigated. I find
that they have," Bowles said.

"Based on the air quality benefits, as well as the compensatory
mitigation measures detailed in this certificate, I find that the
environmental benefits and compensatory mitigation provided by the project are
adequate to mitigate the impacts of the project occurring in Massachusetts,"
he added.

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