Navigation and transportation impacts
How would the turbines be spaced and marked to make them visible to airplane pilots and mariners?
Cape Wind’s turbines would be up to 420 feet high with a hub height about 260 feet above the water surface. They would be arranged in a grid with spaces measuring 0.34 by 0.56 nautical miles (629 by 1,000 meters) in between turbine towers. Each generator would have two flashing lights on the lower platform to warn shipping; additionally, those towers around the perimeter of the park would have red aviation warning lights on the nacelle (generator cover). The park’s lighting plan was designed in consultation with the Coast Guard, the Federal Aviation Administration, and the Army Corps of Engineers.
Would Cape Wind impede commercial or recreational navigation in Nantucket Sound?
Although several commercial navigation channels and ferry routes cross through Nantucket Sound, the Army Corps of Engineers concluded that Cape Wind would not impede navigation in Nantucket Sound because the park is located away from typical ship routes and the turbines would be spaced in a grid rather than scattered, so mariners who sail through the park (mainly recreation vessels with shallower drafts) would be able to navigate along straight, wide lanes between the towers. Because the towers would be marked with numbers and equipped with safety lines, the Corps found that the wind park could aid search and rescue operations in the area. Click here1 to read the Corps opinion on marine navigation impacts (Section 5.12.4.1.1, pages 5-227 to 5-233), and view Figure 5.12-1 for a map of shipping routes in the project vicinity.
Would Cape Wind interfere with commercial or private aircraft traffic or related activities?
The proposed wind park design was reviewed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which issued a Determination of No Hazard to Air Navigation in April 2003. The FAA found that Cape Wind would not adversely affect air traffic operations through Nantucket Sound or in and out of local airports, nor any communications, radar, or control system facilities. This approval was conditioned on the park being equipped with FAA-approved lighting. Click here2 to read the FAA determination.
Additionally, the Air Force and the Department of Defense have determined that Cape Wind would not interfere with the PAVE PAWS early warning radar at Cape Cod Air Force Station near Otis Air Force Base. PAVE PAWS is designed to detect and track missile attacks and support the Space Surveillance Network. The Defense Department determined that the proposed Cape Wind site lay outside of a recommended 25-kilometer offset zone, within which wind turbine generators could provide false signals to the radars. Click here3 to read the Defense Department’s report.
1http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/projects/ma/ccwf/section5.pdf, Section 5.12.4.1.1, pages 5-227 to 5-233; Figure 5.12-1