Nantucket buyer's remorse

Investment Analysis Clubs Macro Economic Trends and Risks
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That was the common sentiment expressed during a Nantucket select board meeting this week about the August 2020 community benefit agreement the town entered into with developers of the Vineyard Wind project, which is currently under construction. “These wind turbines are bigger, brighter, and much more impactful than we ever thought—and not to mention the environmental hazards from failures,” said Dawn Hill, the chairwoman of the select board, which serves as the town’s executive body.

The agreement represented Nantucket’s formal endorsement of the project and satisfied Vineyard Wind’s legal responsibility to consult with the town. Because Nantucket is a federally designated national historic district, regulators and developers must consult with the town on new projects that may threaten its protected status…

Hill, Werkheiser, and the other officials present accused Vineyard Wind of cutting off communications with the town, failing to reduce light pollution emitted by its turbines, slow-walking reports on environmental impacts of the project, failing to disclose construction delays, and failing to work with officials on a plan for emergency scenarios—all of which they said are violations of the 2020 agreement. The Nantucket officials then directed 15 public demands at Vineyard Wind.

DB2

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In other words perhaps one person is against windmills in Nantucket, or this is not much more than bankrupt reporters trying to make money.

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Is Vineyard Wind a commercial enterprise? Probably all one needs to know.

As far as some easily offended person’s indignant reaction? Possible. Possible. Some years ago there was another windmill project off the coast of some town in Mass. I recall it was Martha’s Vineyard but I might be mistaken. Anyway, the people who owned a place there got all up in arms about it destroying the natural beauty of the area and how man-made structures were sort of an evil intrusion. Yadda yadda. I remember this incident because it was a list of rich people and other celebrities like Art Garfunkel and Walter Cronkheit. The only people who could afford to live there and the people who advocate such things for people who can’t do anything about them but don’t wish to have their own 10 million dollar view of the bay harshed

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Opposition is more widespread than that, for example fishermen. Also towns such as Ocean City, MD that are tourist destinations.

Ocean City, Other Stakeholders Sue to Block Offshore Wind Farm
https://www.thewellnews.com/litigation/ocean-city-other-stakeholders-sue-to-block-offshore-wind-farm/
The mayor and city council of this popular tourist destination are the lead plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit intended to roll back the approval of an 80,000-acre wind energy project to be located about 10.7 miles off the Maryland coast. The plaintiffs in the litigation include several neighboring towns and counties, as well as sportfishing groups, hotels, amusement parks and other providers of tourism amenities.

Their 92-page lawsuit claims the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management violated a number of federal statutes and related regulations in approving the construction and operations plan for the project, which is being developed by U.S. Wind.

The alleged wrongdoing includes violations of the Administrative Procedure Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Coastal Zone Management Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act.

DB2

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Oh definitely. I get that completely. There are other perfectly good reasons to be against, or at least “hold the horses” on these projects. But I think it was Leap who sort of indicated (maybe I read it wrong…?) a possible “High-Horse” type who wanted to scuttle an environmentally good project because of some personal or frivolous reason. Like Walter Cronkheit.

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Bob,

Don’t be sucked in a lot of that is made-up information. People do not see the windmills. They are offshore over the horizons.

We have a main street here that saw some new buildings going up on one stretch. The six houses behind the stretch of road created the “Land Preservation Society of Canton CT”…paraphrasing. The group was formed over 15 years ago.

It sounded like thousands of people in Canton were against the use of land for commercial purposes. It was six couples.

People throw a ton of bull at their causes. Free country to bull at the public. Don’t buy it.

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I once knew a man from Nantucket…

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Whose head rang when he struck it.

:bellhop_bell:
ralph

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He tilted at windmills

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Which is something they should have thought about before they voted for it. However, I think the game changer was the Incident of the Broken Blade.

The debris had fallen from a damaged turbine blade at the nearby Vineyard Wind project. The part, made and installed by GE Vernova, had broken three days earlier, and no one really knew why.

The project’s developer, also called Vineyard Wind, scrambled to clean up the mess and assure the public that the material all over their pristine beaches was “non-toxic.” But more and more photos of the bright green debris washed up on social media, many carrying captions like “It’s everywhere” and “STOP #Bigwind!”

Soon, a picture of the broken turbine itself surfaced. The 351-foot blade had snapped about 65 feet from the base and what remained of it hung slackly, dangling over the ocean. It was not a good look for an industry already struggling against economic headwinds and public concern about its impacts on the ocean environment…It didn’t help that GE Vernova couldn’t immediately explain why the blade had broken.

DB2

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NIMBY

I don’t blame them, technology has created some really ugly sights such as windmills, and telephone and WiFi repeaters.

The good news is that solar is growing faster than wind – not quite as ugly.

The Captain

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Come on @syke6! You guys aren’t even trying.

They tried a wind farm in Nantucket.
Locals told developers “Suck It!”
Lawsuits and bad press,
Have made such a mess.
How long before all just say…?

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I happen to find windmills quite nice. Telephone lines and cable lines and poles stringing them through the air maybe not quite so much.

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IMG_0446979×657 116 KB

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Around here (where there are periodic hurricanes), those are almost all put underground at this point. My neighborhood build in late 70s and early 80s has all underground utilities.

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In October 2024, the Town of Ocean City and several co-plaintiffs, including other local governments and businesses, filed suit in U.S. District Court for Maryland against the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management over its approval of the US Wind offshore wind project.

On Wednesday, Ocean City officials pointed to a Feb. 13 decision by U.S. District Court Judge Stephanie Gallagher granting a motion to dismiss US Wind’s cross-claim in its entirety…

Tom Maronick, an Ocean City attorney and member of the Stop Offshore Wind Coalition, said when a case is filed, several claims are asserted and then the opposing side may issue counterclaims — that’s what was thrown out by Gallagher…Ocean City officials, meanwhile, said the ruling reinforced “what we have maintained from the beginning: Ocean City has raised legitimate concerns regarding the offshore wind project and its impacts on our community, economy, tourism industry, and coastal environment.” They said attempts to shift responsibility or complicate the proceedings have now been dismissed by the court.

DB2

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It is dangerous to quote anyone who is a reporter or blogger. Those wonderful human beings go skipping through life selling ad space.

You might find things are different.
Google Query AI

AI Overview

As of 2024–2025, there are

nearly 84,000 onshore wind turbines in the U.S.. While catastrophic, full-tower collapses are rare (a few per year in the US), wind turbine blade failures occur at an estimated rate of 0.5% annually globally, with one source noting over 3,800 blade failures worldwide each year.

[image]Facebook +2

  • Total Turbines: Over 84,000 onshore in the US.
  • Failed/Broken Turbines: While catastrophic collapses are rare, an estimated ~3,800 blade failures occur annually worldwide.
  • Broken Incidents: A global study documented 5,737 total accidents (including minor to severe failures) to September 2024.
  • Recent Events: A 2024 tornado in Iowa crumpled five, and at least 5-6 severe failures often occur annually.
  • Abandoned Turbines: Experts estimate only “in the hundreds” of abandoned turbines in the US, not the thousands often reported.

[image]Quora +5

Total failures represent a small fraction (roughly 0.1% to 0.5%) of the total global turbine population.

[image]Facebook +1

The offshore discussion Google Query AI

AI Overview

As of late 2024–2025, there are

over 11,900+ offshore wind turbines operating globally, primarily in Europe, China, and a small but growing number in the US. While major failures are rare, annual blade failures are estimated at approximately 0.5% of the total, with roughly 3,800 blade, structural, or mechanical incidents reported annually across the global fleet.

[image]grist.org +5

Key Details on Offshore Turbine Numbers and Failures:

  • Total Installations: Global offshore wind capacity reached 59,009 MW from 292 projects.
  • Leading Countries: The UK (51 farms), China (138 farms), and Germany (32 farms) are major operators.
  • Failure Rates: With roughly 700,000 blades spinning globally, the estimated failure rate is about 0.5% annually.
  • Recent Incidents: While failures are rare, recent high-profile incidents, such as the Vineyard Wind project in the U.S., have highlighted risks associated with larger, newer, or experimental turbine models.
  • Common Causes: The most common types of accidents are blade failures, often caused by poor maintenance, manufacturing defects, or fire.

[image]Rhode Island Current +6

While some reports suggest thousands of minor to major incidents in the industry, catastrophic, full-turbine losses are infrequent, with most issues requiring blade repairs or replacements rather than total structural failure.

[image]Facebook +4

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There’s nothing quite as breathtaking as a massive oil refinery!

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Not to mention necessary.

DB2

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I once knew man from Nantuckett.

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This is ancient news from 2020 from an ultra conservative political website:

“Washington Free Beacon”

Their logo features bombs as part of their name. Why should we listen to this old red herring.

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