Diann Corsnitz wrote a letter April 29 asking why Delaware does not seem to have offshore wind rights when Maryland does. On April 19, the Cape Gazette had also published an article by Chris Flood describing a University of Delaware study on how to execute plans for a new wind farm off our coast. These two items are like cousins, as they speak to a similar issue. The white paper is a 52-page masterpiece written by a team of wind experts at the College of Earth, Ocean and Environment that is offering Delaware a blueprint for how to build all the clean electricity we need now and possibly into the future. A key aim for the plan is to avoid state subsidies, taxpayer bailouts and ever-increasing electricity prices for customers and businesses. The study followed through on results from the earlier Offshore Wind Working Group.
Now, the first salvo of criticism has landed predictably from the Caesar Rodney Institute, and I, as an observer, wish to address some of those concerns. We are led to believe that despite the great care made by scientists and engineers at the Special Initiative on Offshore Wind group, Caesar Rodney claims the predicted cost to ratepayers will really be 3.5 to 5.7 times greater than suggested in the plan. These higher costs from a few scary examples may encourage voters to toss the entire plan into a dumpster. I say, wait just a minute here! Let’s remember why we need to do this in the first place. Has anyone noticed any increase in flooding of our streets? How about strange weather patterns with high winds, greater heat, rising seas and weird snowstorms? I know some readers scoff at fears of global warming, but the folks in California, burned out of their homes, and those caught in massive floods in the Midwest are fearing the effects of being victims of climate change.
One result of these disasters is rising insurance rates. An approach to reducing these dangers is to generate clean electricity in ways that do not dump greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. We now buy electricity mostly from chemical generators out of state. We breathe polluted air from those places causing us health problems. If I had a magic wand, I would like to purchase my electricity from Delaware wind and solar generators that are safe. If the intended cost of electricity from these wind turbines is nearly the same or less than it is now (according to the plan), I say let’s do it! The scary high numbers for electricity cost from Caesar Rodney comes from their ignoring federal tax breaks, along with downplaying damages from burning fossil fuels. It’s time to stop being naysayers and join other states in this new age of clean energy. So, yes, Diann, Delaware can develop offshore wind and the University of Delaware has a plan for how to do it!
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