More than a week after a damaged wind turbine off the coast of Massachusetts sent fiberglass shards into the Atlantic Ocean, residents of Nantucket are still finding debris from the Vineyard Wind project washing up on their shores. Beach crews have been working to recover parts of the wreckage, and a helicopter conducted an aerial survey over the weekend of July 20.
Despite these efforts, locals reported finding pieces of the turbine on the island town as recently as the morning of Monday, July 22. Additional debris was also discovered on Cape Cod, about 30 miles north of Nantucket.
Point phone camera here
Vineyard Wind issued a statement emphasizing its commitment to aiding in the recovery process. The company said it has personnel on the ground monitoring the situation and attributed the incident to a damaged turbine blade manufactured by General Electric. The over 300-foot blade detached from the turbine, settled on the ocean floor and released more fiberglass shards into the water.
“Vineyard Wind personnel on the beach are monitoring for debris to assist in maintaining safe conditions for beachgoers and swimmers,” the company said in a statement. “Vineyard Wind is focused on assisting in the recovery of debris caused by GE Vernova’s damaged wind blade.”
The state of Massachusetts announced plans to conduct its own testing on the debris to assess potential public and environmental health impacts. The Nantucket Land and Water Council expressed concerns about the long-term ramifications of the accident, suggesting that the full impact might not be evident for months or even years.
“This is an unacceptable outcome of the development of wind in Nantucket’s offshore waters with serious and unknown ramifications,” the Nantucket Land and Water Council said. “Vineyard Wind must be held accountable to cleaning this up to the maximum extent feasible, but unfortunately this is not a mess that can be completely contained or managed.”
In response to the incident, Nantucket’s Select Board intends to meet to discuss possible legal action. Both Vineyard Wind and GE could potentially face litigation from the town over this accident.
Tags: Atlantic Ocean, Energy, Massachusetts, Offshore wind farms, Pollution, Renewable energy, Wind energy, Wind farms
[JACK AYLMER]
IT’S BEEN MORE THAN A WEEK SINCE A DAMAGED WIND TURBINE OFF THE COAST OF MASSACHUSETTS SENT CHUNKS OF FIBERGLASS INTO THE ATLANTIC OCEAN.
AND CLEAN UP EFFORTS REMAIN ONGOING.
BEACH CREWS WORKED OVER THE WEEKEND TO RECOVER PARTS OF WRECKAGE, WHILE A HELICOPTER CONDUCTED AN AERIAL SURVEY OF THE AREA.
BUT RESIDENTS OF THE NEARBY ISLAND TOWN OF NANTUCKET ARE STILL REPORTING DEBRIS FROM THE VINEYARD WIND PROJECT WASHING UP ON THEIR SHORES. AS RECENTLY AS MONDAY MORNING.
[FISHERMAN]
Where do you think it all is all now water line
[JACK AYLMER]
ADDITIONAL PIECES OF THE TURBINE WERE ALSO DISCOVERED ON CAPE COD, ABOUT 30 MILES NORTH.
VINEYARD WIND SAID THEY WERE FOCUSED ON ASSISTING IN THE RECOVERY OF DEBRIS. THE COMPANY ATTRIBUTING BLAME FOR THE INCIDENT TO A DAMAGED WIND TURBINE BLADE MADE BY GE.
[KLAUS MOELLER]
We will not just leave this as it is now we will monitor it, we will keep the whole team here as long as needed.
[JACK AYLMER]
THIS OVER 300 FOOT BLADE DETACHED FROM THE TURBINE LAST WEEK, SETTLING ON THE OCEAN FLOOR AND SENDING MORE FIBERGLASS SHARDS INTO THE WATER.
THE STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS SAID IT PLANS TO CONDUCT ITS OWN TESTING ON THIS DEBRIS TO DETERMINE ANY POSSIBLE PUBLIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH IMPACTS.
NANTUCKET’S LAND AND WATER COUNCIL WARNED OF SERIOUS RAMIFICATIONS AS A RESULT OF THIS ACCIDENT, THE FULL IMPACT OF WHICH MAY NOT BE SEEN FOR MONTHS OR EVEN YEARS.
[Nantucket Select Board]
I’m a shore fishermen server for over 70 years, all up and down the East Coast. And all those years, I have never witnessed an environmental disaster, as I have in the past three days.
[JACK AYLMER]
THE TOWN’S SELECT BOARD INTENDS TO MEET THIS WEEK TO DISCUSS POTENTIAL LEGAL ACTION OVER THE INCIDENT.
WITH BOTH VINEYARD WIND AND GE POTENTIALLY BEING THE TARGETS OF THIS LITIGATION.
FOR MORE UPDATES ON THIS DEVELOPING STORY SURROUNDING THE VINEYARD WIND PROJECT, DOWNLOAD THE STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS APP AND SIGN UP FOR ALERTS FROM ME – JACK AYLMER – TO GET THE LATEST.
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