1. Introduction
The impacts can be social, economic, or environmental in nature. The economic and social impacts include the visual and noise impacts of onshore and offshore wind farms; the economic impacts of incurred turbine maintenance, emergency response equipment, and decommissioning; altered shipping lanes, recreational boating, and commercial fishing in the nearshore area, and the presence of large turbine components being transported. The environmental impacts of offshore wind farms have not been comprehensively assessed. In 2016, the United States issued permits for the construction of the first commercial-scale offshore wind farm. Two similar permit requests are being processed. The first and so far only award – to construct a 40-turbine Cape Wind in Nantucket Sound, offshore of the state of Massachusetts – is currently stuck in the courts due to substantial likely environmental impacts of the construction and operational phase which would (e.g., emf water concerns, “workpile” [impact of secondary construction – distribution lines] and long-term underwater water impacts) from the project. The project has also had problems due to substantial likely impacts of the operational and decommissioning phases of the project to avian species.
The development of offshore wind from coastal communities has remained an important issue in the United States for many years. Supporters argue that offshore wind offers several benefits to coastal communities and the country. The first benefit is that offshore wind is a renewable energy source that relieves the ocean of global warming gases that would have been produced if the same energy had been obtained by burning fuels. The second benefit is that offshore wind will help solve the problem of energy security. The country has limited reserves of traditional fossil fuels and the production of these fuels is increasingly influenced by countries that are not always friendly. The third benefit is that offshore wind turbines will create jobs and stimulate economies in communities immediately adjacent to offshore turbines. This is because resources like a steel foundation, which was placed at sea, could be manufactured and loaded onto ships for subsequent manufacture and build-out all by workforces in oceanfront states. The fourth advantage is that offshore wind provides an alternative to fossil fuels for producing the energy used in desalination equipment for agriculture and water treatment facilities. As with the benefits of land-based wind, the costs of these benefits can be debated.