Ørsted plans to use B.L. England, requiring use of county roadway
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By BILL BARLOW /Special to the Sentinel
UPPER TOWNSHIP – With a decision that the former B.L. England generating station in the Beesleys Point section of Upper Township will be one of two sites where power generated by offshore wind will enter the power grid, a plan for a massive wind farm off the coast has never seemed closer.
It has also never been more vigorously opposed.
The Danish energy giant Ørsted has proposed running power lines from up to 99 enormous wind turbines planned for 15 miles off the coast of Cape May and Atlantic counties across Ocean City underneath the roadways, and then through Upper Township to the power plant.
“Roosevelt Boulevard is a county road,” said Gerald Thornton, the president of the Cape May County Board of Commissioners. “We’re definitely going to take a look at this and how it impacts us.”
He described the lack of communication with the county about the plans as arrogance.
“There’s just a lot of assumptions being made here without a lot of discussion,” he said.
Thornton has been part of the county governing body for decades. Until this year, the five-member board was known as the Board of Chosen Freeholders. Thornton joked that he is still getting use to the name change.
Thornton has long been an opponent of oil exploration off the New Jersey coast, or anywhere near it. In his skepticism of the wind turbine proposal, he cited some of the same arguments.
“We’ve got a $6.9 billion tourism business that we have to protect here,” he said, also citing the fishing industry, worth another $192 million or so to the local economy. Thornton cited concerns from the fishing industry about the potential impact of the wind farm on the annual catch, and other potential issues.
Members of Ocean City Council have expressed similar concerns. Under one scenario, the lines would pass under the beach and cross the city in the public right of way, but members of the city’s governing body have expressed reluctance to allow that. At a City Council meeting last year, a representative of Ørsted said denying the right of way would not derail the project, estimated by the Board of Public Utilities to cost $1.6 billion and set to power a half-million homes.
Upper Township Committee has already come out in favor of the plan. Officials are looking at options for the huge waterfront site, declaring it an area in need of redevelopment. Mayor Rich Palombo has expressed hopes for a mixed-use area, to include marinas, hotels, restaurants and residential uses.
The plant burned coal and diesel for decades, long ago running afoul of federal clean air regulations. But plans to convert to natural gas were derailed by lengthy and tenacious opposition to running a natural gas pipeline to the property through protected Pinelands.
But Upper Township has also received some pushback. At a meeting this year, a resident worried about the impact of buried power lines on property values and raised concerns about the electromagnetic fields (EMF) that would accompany high-voltage lines. She attended the meeting after seeing a crew surveying her neighborhood for the power line route, she told committee.
In a recent interview, Thornton linked the pipeline proposal to the plans to run underground lines to the former power plant, suggesting there will be silence on that proposal.
In fact, at least one of the pipeline opponents has come out in favor of the current plan.
“Ørsted’s decision to use B.L England and Oyster Creek for its offshore wind farm is a win for wind. By taking the former fossil fuel B.L England plant for wind is a positive step in the right direction,” said Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “I’m a big fan of Ørsted’s decision. We do not need any more fossil fuel pipelines. Instead, we need to use renewable energy to create green jobs and a green economy.”
On April 13, the Board of County Commissioners discussed the issue at the workshop meeting. Commissioner E. Marie Hayes suggested a representative from the local fishing industry address the board.
“I think it’s time for the discussion to really get started,” she said. “It is a big push. I mean, it’s coming from the federal government.”
“The issue is, the feds are pushing this and also the state is pushing this. And I can tell you, I really think we have an uphill battle,” Thornton said at the meeting. “I just want us to make sure that our fishermen and that industry is protected.”
Hayes cited the extensive disruption to the seabed when the footings for the wind turbines are put in place.
The aesthetics of the wind turbines were a big part of the discussion in Ocean City. Renderings depicting the project prepared by Ørsted show a line of wind turbines on the horizon as seen from local beaches. That was not a worry for Thornton.
“Believe me when I tell you I’m not worried about what they look like 15 miles away. That’s not the issue here,” he said.
He cited the impact on tourism, singling out Ocean City, and asserted the project will not provide jobs in Cape May County. The board planned to put a representative of the fishing industry on the agenda for an upcoming meeting.
Commissioner Will Morey said there are several issues to be discussed, and that he wants board members to fully understand the project before making a decision.
“If we’re trying to protect the fishermen’s income from disruption, that’s different than not wanting to build wind turbines,” he said.
In an interview after the meeting, Thornton stopped short of stating opposition to the proposal, but said the board wants answers.
“We are going to oppose it until we feel comfortable with the answers and know that these issues are getting addressed,” he said.
This month, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management issued a notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement on plans for Ocean Wind, part of the process of securing federal permits for the project.
Those interested in commenting on the plans have until just before midnight April 29. More information on the project can be found at www.boem.gov/ocean-wind and those wishing to comment in writing may do so at the regulations.gov web portal. Search for docket number BOEM-2021-0024. Then click on the “Comment Now!” button to the right of the document link, enter your comment and your information, then click “Submit.”
