Participating Organizations Alliance for a Living Ocean American Littoral Society Arthur Kill Coalition Clean Ocean Action www.CleanOceanAction.org Asbury Park Fishing Club Bayberry Garden Club Bayshore Saltwater Flyrodders Belford Seafood Co-op Belmar Fishing Club Main Office Institute of Coastal Education Beneath The Sea Bergen Save the Watershed Action Network 18 Hartshorne Drive 3419 Pacific Avenue Berkeley Shores Homeowners Civic Association P.O. Box 505, Sandy Hook P.O. Box 1098 Cape May Environmental Commission Wildwood, NJ 08260-7098 Central Jersey Anglers Highlands, NJ 07732-0505 Citizens Conservation Council of Ocean County Voice: 732-872-0111 Voice: 609-729-9262 Clean Air Campaign Fax: 732-872-8041 Fax: 609-729-1091 Coalition Against Toxics Ocean Advocacy [email protected] Coalition for Peace & Justice [email protected] Coastal Jersey Parrot Head Club Since 1984 Coast Alliance Communication Workers of America, Local 1034 Concerned Businesses of COA Concerned Citizens of Bensonhurst Concerned Citizens of COA Concerned Citizens of Montauk Statement of Clean Ocean Action Dosil’s Sea Roamers Eastern Monmouth Chamber of Commerce Environmental Response Network Blue Ribbon Panel on Development of Explorers Dive Club Fisheries Defense Fund Wind Turbine Facilities in Coastal Waters Fishermen’s Dock Cooperative Fisher’s Island Conservancy Monmouth County Library Friends of Island Beach State Park Friends of Liberty State Park Friends of Long Island Sound Manalapan, NJ Friends of the Boardwalk Garden Club of Englewood May 23, 2005 Garden Club of Fair Haven Garden Club of Long Beach Island Garden Club of Morristown Garden Club of Navesink Garden Club of New Jersey Thank you for the opportunity to submit comments at tonight’s meeting. Clean Ocean Garden Club of New Vernon Garden Club of Oceanport Action is a broad-based coalition of conservation, environmental, fishing, boating, diving, Garden Club of Princeton Garden Club of Ridgewood Garden Club of Rumson student, surfing, women's, business, service, and community groups. Our goal is to Garden Club of Short Hills Garden Club of Shrewsbury improve the degraded water quality of the marine waters off the New Jersey/New York Garden Club of Spring Lake Garden Club of Washington Valley Great Egg Harbor Watershed Association coast. Clean Ocean Action (COA) identifies sources of pollution and mounts attacks on Greater Point Pleasant Charter Boat Association Highlands Business Partnership each source by using research, public education, and citizen action to convince our public Highlands Chamber of Commerce 1 Hudson River Fishermen’s Association/NJ officials to enact and enforce measures that will clean up and protect our ocean. COA Interact Clubs of Rotary International Jersey Coast Shark Anglers Jersey Shore Audubon Society does not currently have a position on offshore wind turbine facilities. Jersey Shore Captains Association Jersey Shore Running Club Junior League of Monmouth County Junior League of Summit 2 Kiwanis Club of Manasquan Citing a “vital need” to understand the costs and benefits of offshore windmill facilities Kiwanis Club of Shadow Lake Village Leonardo Party & Pleasure Boat Association as an alternative energy source, Acting Governor Richard J. Codey signed an Executive Leonardo Tax Payers Association Main Street Wildwood Order to establish this Blue Ribbon Panel and ordered a 15-month freeze on funding or Marine Trades Association of NJ Monmouth Conservation Foundation Monmouth County Association of Realtors permitting of any offshore windmills. This action is a responsible, reasonable, and good Monmouth County Audubon Society Monmouth County Friends of Clearwater governance approach. COA strongly supports Acting Governor Codey’s Executive Montauk Fisherman’s Emergency Fund National Coalition for Marine Conservation Natural Resources Protective Association Order. Navesink River Municipalities Committee Newcomers Club of Monmouth County NJ Beach Buggy Association NJ Commercial Fishermen’s Association New Jersey must do more to develop a comprehensive energy plan to reduce its NJ Council of Dive Clubs NJ Environmental Federation NJ Environmental Lobby dependency on brown energy. The evaluation of ocean based opportunities for renewable NJ Marine Educators Association NJ PIRG Citizen Lobby energy is a valid consideration. However, a thorough and true evaluation of the costs and NJ Sierra Club NJ Windsurfing Association Nottingham Hunting & Fishing Club benefits is essential in determining whether to open the ocean to a new, permanent and NYC Sea Gypsies NY/NJ Baykeeper unprecedented industrial use. To that end, COA requests that the Panel answer the NY Marine Educators Association Ocean Advocates following questions: Ocean Conservancy Ocean County Citizens for Clean Water Ocean Divas Ocean Wreck Divers Outreach/First Presbyterian Church of Rumson I. Scientific Validity Picatinny Saltwater Sportsmen Club Raritan Riverkeeper Riverside Drive Association A. How will the Panel scrutinize, evaluate and confirm data and information to be Rotary Club of Long Branch Saint George’s by the River Church, Rumson used in their cost/benefit analysis, taking into consideration possible bias and Saltwater Anglers of Bergen County Sandy Hook Bay Catamaran Club conflict of interests of the sources? Save Barnegat Bay Save the Bay SEAS Monmouth i. For example: Atlantic Renewable’s Feasibility Study represents an obvious Seaweeders Garden Club Shark River Cleanup Coalition conflict of interest and all data, information and conclusions of this report Shark River Surf Anglers Sheepshead Bay Fishing Fleet Association Shore Adventure Club should be properly scrutinized, evaluated and confirmed by the Panel prior to Shore Surf Club Sierra Club, Shore Chapter being cited as facts or used in any calculations. Soroptimist Club of Cape May County South Monmouth Board of Realtors B. Are data available to determine impacts on the marine environment and that are Staten Island Friends of Clearwater Strathmere Fishing & Environmental Club Surfers’ Environmental Alliance relevant to the New Jersey shore? How will the Panel evaluate environmental Surfrider Foundation, Jersey Shore Chapter TACK I impacts in the absence of such data? Terra Nova Garden Club Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Mon. County United Boatmen of NY/NJ United Bowhunters of NJ Volunteer Friends of Boaters Waterspirit Women’s Club of Brick Township Women’s Club of Keyport 1 Women’s Club of Long Branch Visit http://www.cleanoceanaction.org for more information. Women’s Club of Merchantville 2 Zen Society NJ Office of the Governor- Press Release, December 23, 2004. Printed on 100% post-consumer recycledpaper. II. Verification of Effectiveness/ Efficiency A. By what percentage will offshore wind energy use reduce our dependency on nonrenewable energy sources? B. By what percentage will wind energy reduce air emissions, and thus water pollution, by decreasing reliance on nonrenewable sources? C. Should NJ develop offshore wind energy, what would be the quantitative reduction in the following: i. mercury concentrations in fish? ii. harmful emissions? iii. sea level rise? 3 D. Studies have shown that wind turbine facilities generate some CO2 ; will this release be included in the cost/benefit analysis? E. What are the costs and benefits of using wind energy versus energy efficiency, conservation methods and/or other renewable energy technologies? i. By what percentage can significant reductions in emissions be made by energy efficient appliance standards and increasing the current energy code? ii. In the interest of maximizing public subsidies, what is the best return for energy efficiency programs? Analysis should include a comparison of alternatives such as tax breaks and rebates for energy efficient product purchases. iii. What are the costs of offshore wind energy compared to inland solar energy? III. Sources of Pollution A. What potential impacts are there from the oil and fuel on the Central Service Platform? (For example, the Cape Wind facility, which encompasses 130 turbines, will have a Central Service Platform that will hold 40,000 gallons of transformer oil, 1000 gallons of diesel fuel, and a helicopter pad on top.) i. What are the uses for these materials? a. How much oil and fuel is expected to be stored on New Jersey facilities? b. How are these uses regulated? c. How are these materials transported to the platform and from the platform to the turbines? ii. What is the likelihood of a spill? a. What is the frequency of refilling the diesel fuel and transformer oil? b. What is the likelihood of leaks from the platform and from the pipes to the turbines? c. Are there any safeguards for preventing spills due to storm events? B. What potential impacts are there from materials used for turbines and cables? i. Are the turbines or cables degradable? ii. Do the turbines or cables contain toxics, such as liquid insulators or heavy metals? iii. What are the impacts of the electromagnetic field generated by the cables? C. Would the wind farm be located within the usual path of ships? If yes, could the siting increase chance of shipwrecks and/or oil spills from tankers? D. Are there any additional/possible sources of pollution? E. Are there any requirements for efficient environmentally sound operations and management? There are many unanswered questions and important issues to answer and analyze. The Blue Ribbon Panel has the significant responsibility of determining the appropriateness of wind turbines