Offshore Wind Work Group

Map: MA Offshore Wind Project Areas

Background

Clean energy goals and the preservation of Nantucket’s unique historic character are not mutually exclusive.  Indeed, the historic preservation movement has been a leader in finding creative ways to address climate change and sea level rise. Communities like Nantucket with significant inventories of historic properties connected to historic ocean viewsheds have legal rights under the National Environmental Policy Act and National Historic Preservation Act that too often get overlooked. Under these federal statutes, and related state laws, federal agencies have a duty to assess adverse effects on historic and cultural resources and find ways through consultation to avoid, minimize, or mitigate harm. Adverse effects of offshore wind farms include, but are not limited to visual impacts, lighting impacts, and harm to local economies that depend on the preservation and protection of historic ocean landscapes.

Communities and offshore wind developers can and should forge long-term partnerships. Establishing trust, engaging in consultation, and developing creative solutions make it possible to achieve clean energy goals while ensuring that Nantucket has ways to offset the development’s harms to heritage tourism, property values, and historic context.

What We Do

Local governments and property owners have rights to be consulted on projects and policies that affect their interests, including impacts on their cultural and environmental resources. The Offshore Wind Work Group's mission is to represent the best interests of the island to wind developers seeking to build windfarms offshore Nantucket. Along with our legal counsel at Cultural Heritage Partners, PLLC, our work group meets and consults as needed to assist Town leadership to:

• Evaluate local environmental, economic, and/or visual impacts
• Determine appropriate project mitigation measures to offset perceived and assessed impacts, including through the Section 106 review process
• Negotiate for tangible community benefits, such as through a Community Benefit Agreement, offshore wind mitigation trust fund, or other economic development arrangements, as are standard in the offshore wind industry for impacted communities

Consulting Members

• Mary Bergman, Nantucket Preservation Trust
• Shantaw Bloise, Department of Culture & Tourism Director
• Diane Coombs, Historic District Commission
• Matt Fee, Select Board
• Malcolm MacNab, Select Board
• Pete Kaiser, Fisheries Representative for the County Commission of Nantucket
• Andy Lowell, Shellfish Advisory Board
• Stephen Maury, Finance Committee
• Tom Montgomery, Nantucket Historical Commission
• Joe Plandowski, Nantucket Conservation Commission
• Joanna Roche, Maria Mitchell Association
• Maureen Phillips, Madaket Residents Association, at-large
• David Worth, at-large
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Staff Liaisons

• Lauren Sinatra, Energy Coordinator
• Holly Backus, Preservation Planner

Legal Advisors

• Will Cook, Cultural Heritage Partners
• Greg Werkheiser, Cultural Heritage Partners

Federal Regulatory Framework

In reviewing permit applications for offshore wind projects, the Bureau of Ocean Energy management (BOEM) is required under federal law to consider the impacts to resources in the Project Area. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is designed to ensure that the public and decision-makers are provided with the information they need to make a considered decision about the best path forward. The statute is also designed to ensure that the agency has carefully and fully contemplated the environmental effects of its proposed action, requiring federal agencies to take a “hard look” at the environmental consequences of a proposed action. In addition to considering impacts on the natural environment, NEPA requires federal agencies to consider impacts on historic and cultural resources.

Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) requires BOEM to address impacts to historic properties.  As part of the federal government’s policy of protecting the nation’s historic heritage and sense of orientation as an American people, Section 106 requires federal agencies to consider the effects on historic properties of projects they carry out, assist, fund, permit, license, or approve throughout the country.

If a federal or federally-assisted project has the potential to affect historic properties listed or determined eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, a Section 106 review is required. During Section 106 review, once historic properties have been identified in coordination with the applicable State Historic Preservation Officer, the federal agency charged with permitting the proposed project must find ways to avoid, minimize, or mitigate adverse effects to those properties in consultation with parties who have a demonstrated interest in the undertaking.  If a community like Nantucket has National Historic Landmarks—such as the Nantucket Historic District—that have a potential to experience adverse effects, Section 110(f) of the NHPA requires BOEM to use all possible planning to minimize harm, a heightened legal duty that BOEM often overlooks. 

To learn more about NEPA and the NHPA, additional information is available here and here. 

Federally Permitted Projects

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Vineyard Wind 

As a result of the Town’s advocacy during BOEM’s environmental review process, Nantucket and Vineyard Wind entered into a Good Neighbor Agreement in August 2020, in which Vineyard Wind’s top executives committed to remove the first row of turbines, employ an Aircraft Lighting Detection System (ALDS) for the top of turbines to reduce nighttime lighting impacts, use a non-reflective paint color to minimize turbine visibility, and create a $16 million Nantucket Offshore Wind Community Fund, which will be administered by the Community Foundation for Nantucket. The Fund, which is based on tested European models, will support local initiatives to combat the effects of climate change, enhance coastal resiliency, and protect, restore, and preserve Nantucket’s cultural and historic resources.  The first $4 million has already been received. As Vineyard Wind’s subsequent projects move forward, Vineyard Wind will provide additional funding to further support the Fund over the next 8-10 years, which will also accept contributions from other wind developers and philanthropists.

Construction on Vineyard Wind is underway. The project is expected to start delivering power in October 2023.   

Cultural Heritage Partners continues to monitor for the Town several projects that will add to the cumulative impacts from offshore wind development on Nantucket, summaries of which are set forth below.

• Town of Nantucket Letter to BOEM - April 30, 2018
• Energy Coordinator Memo - February 13, 2019
• Town of Nantucket Letter to BOEM - February 22, 2019
• BOEM Finding of Adverse Effect for Vineyard Wind Project - April 10, 2019
• Town Counsel Letter to BOEM - April 19, 2019
• Town of Nantucket Letter to Dept. of Environmental Protection - April 25, 2019
• Vineyard Wind Response Letter to Town of Nantucket - May 3, 2019 
• Revised Finding of Adverse Effect - June 20, 2019
• Town of Nantucket Comments on BOEM Finding of Adverse Effect for Vineyard Wind Offshore Energy Project - July 20, 2019
• Town Letter to DOER re- MA Offshore Wind Solicitations - September 4, 2019
• Letter to the Secretary of the Interior Re: Vineyard Wind Offshore Energy Project within Lease Area OCS-A 0501 - November 22, 2019 (PDF)
• Vineyard Wind And Nantucket Announce Community Partnership Vineyard Wind and Nantucket Announce Community Partnership - September 8, 2020

Projects Under Active Permitting Review

SouthCoast Wind (formerly Mayflower Wind)

SouthCoast Wind is a joint venture wind farm between Shell Renewables and Ocean Winds developing 23 miles south of Nantucket. There will be up to 147 turbines standing up to 1,066 feet tall, with red flashing aviation lights on top and lower platform lights at the base for maritime navigation. 

On February 8, 2023, SouthCoast Wind visited Nantucket to discuss the project and presented to the Select Board. 
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