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november/december 2016cruisingworld.comexperience from that isn’t a direct read
across to some of the bigger projects that
are being produced.”
In 2015, the RYA published a list of
recommendations about how wind-farm
developers can minimize collisions by
maintaining a minimum height for where
turbine blades can pass. The list also
called for a standardized layout of rows
and columns for all wind farms.
“The RYA is representing to the devel-
opers through the government the need
to maintain proper marking, to make
sure exclusion zones are not put in place
around wind farms, and that they meet
minimum design parameters for rotor
height and charted depth so that should
you choose to sail through them, you still
can,” said Carruthers.X Marks the Spot
For many sailors in New England, the
Block Island Wind Project hearkens back
to memories of the failed Cape Wind ven-
ture from the early 2000s. Controversy
erupted when developers proposed
the construction of 130 turbines of
Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound.
Opposition came from nearly every side:fi shermen, American Indian groups, and
property owners concerned that wind tur-
bines would ruin their view.
A common billboard held up by pro-
testers read, “Right Idea, Wrong Place!”
That message spoke to the opinion that
wind energy was the correct move, but
Horseshoe Shoal was a terrible place to
erect more than 100 turbines. But where
does one place a wind farm so everyone
is happy?
To answer this question, Rhode
Island created the Ocean Special Area
Management Plan and invited numerous
user groups, including recreational sailors,
to come forward and identify areas of the
ocean they frequented. Because of their
proximity to Block Island, oi cials from
the local Storm Trysail Club were invited
to share their expertise. Members of the
community identifi ed major routes used
by the cruising community as well as areas
where buoy races frequently occur.
Call it smart ocean planning or simply
due diligence, but many feel that the Block
Island Wind Project sailed through the fed-
eral permitting process because it worked
so closely with the people who use the
waters so frequently. Everyone from the
Lobstermen’s Association to the United
States Navy was brought into the process
to give as much insight as possible about
the prospective sites for the wind farm.Impact on Cruisers
Of shore of Block Island, the United States
Coast Guard established a 500-yard safety
zone around each of the wind- turbine
foundations while they were being con-
structed. Now that the turbines have been
completed, however, boats are free to
transit as close to the wind turbines as they
wish, provided no maintenance is ongoing.
“There is no safety zone or exclusion
zone when the project is in operation,”says Meaghan Wims, from Deepwater
Wind. “Now that the turbines are con-
structed, those restrictions are no longer
intact. Boats are free to roam.”
If you do plan on sailing through the
Block Island Wind Farm, or any other
wind farm, be aware that depending on
the height of your mast, you could run the
risk of a collision with turbine blades. In
the case of the Block Island Wind Farm,
vessels with masts higher than 85 feet
should take caution while navigating very
close to turbines.
From a navigation standpoint, wind tur-
bines can be considered a nuisance, but
there are also some perceived benefi ts. The
USCG considers the turbines to be aids to
navigation, and they can serve as reference
points for sailors; individual wind turbines
and the perimeter of the wind farm will be
represented on updated NOAA navigation
charts. And although the USCG prohibits
sailors from mooring on or climbing up
wind-turbine platforms, mariners could tie
up to them in the case of an emergency.
In a survey conducted by the RYA,
over 80 percent of respondents who
sailed through a wind farm had no trouble
navigating, and nearly a third of the
respondents rated the experience as a
positive one.
Sailors who have transited through
Block Island Sound are well aware of how
much wind blows through the region,
so the introduction of wind turbines
should come as no surprise. For resi-
dents of Block Island, who currently rely
on expensive diesel generators for their
energy, the switch to of shore wind power
will come as a welcome relief.Freelance environmental writer Tyson
Bottenus is passionate about the marine envi-
ronment and has worked with Sailors for the
Sea and NOAA Fisheries.GREEN WAKESIn July 2016, right before the fi nal assembly of the massive turbines, Deepwater Wind hosted an unveiling of the
components at Port of Providence in Rhode Island (above). Each blade is 240 feet long and weighs 27 tons. The fi nished
turbines stand 589 feet above the surface of the water. The wind farm appears as notations on NOAA charts (below).STEVEN SABO/INSPIRE ENVIRONMENTAL (TOP); COURTESY OF DEEPWATER WIND