First Commercial-Scale Wind Farm in the U.S. Would Generate Electricity to Power 400,000 Homes

The Vineyard Wind project, located off the coast of Massachusetts, is the first major offshore wind farm in the U.S. It is part of a larger push to tackle climate change, with other offshore wind projects along the east Coast under federal review.

The U.S. Department of the Interior has estimated that by the end of the decade 2,000 turbines could be along the coast from Massachusetts to North Carolina.

"While the case for offshore wind power appears to be growing due to real concerns about global warming, there are still people who fight renewable energy projects based on speculation, misinformation, climate denial, and  "Not In My Back Yard" attitudes,” says Karl F. Schmidt, Professor of Practice at Villanova University College of Engineering, and director of the College's RISE (Resilient Innovation through Sustainable Engineering) Forum. “There is overwhelming scientific evidence that use of fossil fuels for power generation is driving unprecedented levels of CO₂ into our atmosphere and oceans. This causes sea level rise, increasing ocean temperature, and increasing ocean acidity, all which have numerous secondary environmental, economic and social impacts.”

Schmidt notes that what’s often missing for large capital projects such as the Vineyard Wind project is conducting a Life Cycle Assessment, which looks at environmental impacts from the entire life cycle of the project, (i.e. from raw material extraction, manufacturing, construction through operation and maintenance and end of life). These impacts, in terms of tons/ CO₂ equivalent) can then be compared with the baseline (in this case, natural gas/coal power plants). "With this comprehensive look, I suspect the Life Cycle Assessment for an offshore wind farm would be significantly less than a fossil fuel power plant," says Schmidt.

Complementing the Life Cycle Assessment should be a thorough, whole systems view encompassing the pertinent social, technology, environmental, economic, and political (STEEP) aspects of the project, notes Schmidt. “This would include all views of affected stakeholders such as residents, fishermen, local officials, labor markets, etc. Quantifying these interdependent aspects can lead to a more informed and balanced decision making process based on facts and data."

"At Villanova's Sustainable Engineering Department we've successfully used both the Life Cycle Assessment and STEEP process on numerous student projects for many of our RISE Forum member companies' projects, notes Schmidt"

To speak with Schmidt, email mediaexperts@villanova.edu