January 7, 2021 — Online stakeholder meetings last month revealed the depth of skepticism Maine officials face from the fishing and lobster industries over a proposal for a small test cluster of floating wind turbines off the state’s southern coast.
The series of four webinars, most of which were focused on the fishing industry, were intended to gather input on where to build the project. They were the first of several stakeholder engagement efforts that will continue early this year.
Originally announced in late November, the wind farm, which the state calls a “research array,” would be located 20 to 40 miles offshore in the Gulf of Maine and take up about 16 square miles of ocean, with a maximum of 12 turbines. This is about a tenth of the size of commercial wind lease areas along the East Coast, according to the state. The project would initially have a 20-year lease in the federal waters.
The state is looking to choose a site from an area (outlined in red on this map) in the Gulf of Maine toward the southern end of the state, roughly east of Portland.
Gathering meaningful input and data from the industry to decide on the most appropriate site for the project would take at least two years, said Annie Hawkins, executive director of the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance. This sentiment was echoed by many webinar attendees.
Applying to the Bureau of Ocean Land Management in the spring is “not even close,” Hawkins said. “The timeline is way off.” Adding the pandemic on top of that, which makes in-person meetings nearly impossible, further complicates the process, she said.
From state officials’ perspective, this is the most time-effective way to stay ahead of commercial development. But Hawkins said the state has leverage on commercial projects: Officials could refuse power purchase agreements with developers, or they could oppose federal projects that interfere with Maine’s fisheries, serving as a sort of veto.