A version of this story was edited for our paper and can be read here.
Vineyard Wind seems to be making concessions to Nantucket after the town issued a list of 15 demands to the offshore wind company earlier this summer, among the promises is Vineyard Wind pledging to improve communications with the town.
A much-discussed and delayed conversation between the town of Nantucket and Vineyard Wind took place last Thursday, Aug. 21, and the parties “reached preliminary consensus” in three areas that culminate into the demands, a press release from the town said Friday afternoon.
“The Town of Nantucket thanks the public for its ongoing advocacy, elected officials for their partnership, and the press for its continued coverage of this important issue,” the press release said. “We welcome Vineyard Wind’s renewed focus on accountability and look forward to finalizing standards that uphold the commitments made in the Community Benefit Agreement.”
Though the same outcry for accountability isn’t seemingly as apparent on the Vineyard as Nantucket, the Edgartown select board, which has said they’re considering similar action to Nantucket, had an executive session Monday to “discuss strategy with respect to litigation” on matters that included Vineyard Wind. There were no announcements made in the subsequent regular select board meeting pertaining to the offshore wind company.
The consensus reached with Nantucket, though not yet official, is that Vineyard Wind will improve communications with the town and public “through a series of protocols that require regular, detailed reports, timely responses to questions, sharing of regulatory documents, and prompt emergency notifications, among other obligations.” Also under the possible agreement, Nantucket would play a direct role in planning the developer’s updated emergency response plans, and Vineyard Wind will provide detailed data on the aircraft detection lighting system (ADLS) performance — a hot topic on the Vineyard as well where a system turns blinking red lights on only when planes fly overhead.
Earlier this month, Vineyard Wind, days after hearing from the Nantucket select board, announced they’d integrated all existing offshore wind turbines (one-third of the 62-turbine project were said to be installed as of the end of July) with ADLS. Part of the town’s demands was that for every day the system isn’t active, the company should pay them $25,000 per turbine.
Nantucket officials made the demands on the basis that the offshore wind company failed to meet expectations set forth in a community benefits agreement, also known as the Good Neighbor Agreement, signed in 2020. The community benefits agreement established for the Vineyard was only just recently released, about a decade since its formation, and is structurally similar but doesn’t hold Vineyard Wind to all the same commitments as Nantucket’s agreement.
During Thursday’s meeting, the town was led by select board member Brooke Mohr, and Vineyard Wind was led by CEO Klaus Moeller. The parties plan to reconvene on Sept. 12 to continue negotiations.
“The parties are putting to paper the specific language of each protocol to achieve these outcomes,” the press release said. It also said that the parties agree the commitment needs enforcement mechanisms.
Meanwhile, Gov. Maura Healey told the Nantucket Current last Tuesday that she supports the town and has been asking Vineyard Wind to respond. “I stand with the town, and I’ve already reached out to Vineyard Wind, including just a day ago, to reiterate my request to them to work with the town to meet the town’s needs, especially around emergency response, communication, transparency, all of that. It’s so so important. I have been emphatic with Vineyard Wind about that and about my expectations, and I will continue to be,” Healey said. “And I will continue also to be available to meet with to discuss this with the town and with the select board and residents as we move forward because this is a long-term engagement, and we need things to be done the right way. We need real partnership with the town from Vineyard Wind, and that’s my expectation.”
Healey said her administration’s worked on this issue with Nantucket for over a year now.
Thank you governor for your interest and support.
Klaus please leave our country and take your wind mills with you. Tell your Scandinavian friends to build their wind mill farms in their country!!
As a former business man investor I built my company on profits. I understand your motives and the game your playing praying on innocent people with the promise of saving the environment. You and your partners are in this for the money!
Leave us along leave our homes, our Island and our coastal lines void of your monster machines.
The contribution you will make to reducing our cost of energy is negligible most of the Lyon share of revenue goes to the ocean and off shore entities leading this product.
Biden is gone now and I a man with means and many friends in government will make an extraordinary effort to end your plaque on our environment. See you in the courts of wherever.
Andrew, I politely disagree with your position.
These waters are a perfect location for wind energy generation.
We need the electricity the turbines are generating and will continue to generate. We need more wind generated power.
Great summary Andrew, Wind and Solar are the plagues on land and sea. One last thought. Will Kaus commit to remove this broken trash?
I think that the islands that overwhelmingly voted for a party who’s policies forced this boondoggle should suck it up and accept the results
That’s what I call “environmental justice “
I find the continued misinformation and xenophobia associated with this project disturbing. The unfounded generalizations about “trash” and taxpayer money, along with outright lies “pushed down our throats” are emblematic of the disinformation and hysteria that is ripping our republic apart. The big oil propaganda machine is rolling over many well intentioned people who do not understand the facts or the seriousness of the situation that these machines are attempting to address. Of course, these machines are not the be all and end all to our problems, but they are a baby step in the right direction. I will use the analogy that Americans who grew up watching 1/2 hour tv shows that always resolved whatever problem was being addressed are used to quick and easy solutions. We have spent decades polluting our environment and creating an unsustainable lifestyle that will eventually result in a collision with the metaphorical fan. I know there are many well intentioned people who are concerned, but I would ask that they keep it to the facts. The xenophobia has no place in a free society. I am somewhat surprised that no one has accused the Times of photoshopping the marine mammals into the picture. .