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About the South Coast Offshore Wind Project

Patriot Renewables, LLC, the renewable energy affiliate of Jay Cashman, Inc., is studying the feasibility of siting an offshore wind farm project in Buzzards Bay.

South Coast Wind is committed to working cooperatively with local communities and organizations to develop a viable wind energy project that will meet the energy needs of the region and bring new jobs, vitality and tourism to the area.

Project Specifications

• 300 MW Total
• 90 – 120 turbines overall
• 2.3 – 3.6 MW per turbine
• Spaced approximately ¼ - ½ miles apart
• 3 study areas (30 – 40 turbines each, if equally distributed)
• Turbines will be located approximately 1 to 3 miles offshore.
• Final turbine locations will depend on equipment selection, environmental factors and wind regime.

Possible Turbine Selections

SouthCoast Massachusetts is an Ideal Location for Wind Energy

To develop a viable offshore wind farm, there are three initial siting factors that must be considered. Buzzards Bay meets all of the criteria.

• Wind resource – Strong, steady wind speeds are one of the most important factors in siting a wind project. According to wind speed estimates prepared by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (in conjunction with the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund and Northeast Utilities), the average wind speed in Buzzards Bay is approximately 18 – 20 mph – some of the best wind available in Massachusetts.

• Water depth / Sheltered water – Offshore wind turbines must be built in relatively shallow water, protected from the heavy seas found in open waters. Using today’s technology, the maximum water depth for locating an offshore wind turbine is approximately 50 to 60 ft. Buzzards Bay has suitable water depths and is sheltered from northeasterly storms.

• Proximity to existing transmission lines – An important consideration in building a wind project is minimizing the amount of transmission infrastructure that has to be constructed. This reduces the overall impact of the project and improves its economics. The SouthCoast offers several locations near existing lines and transmission stations which make it affordable to connect to the existing power grid.

Environmental Benefits

• South Coast Wind will reduce the region’s reliance on fossil fuel and reduce CO2 emissions, the leading cause of global warming. A single MW of wind in MA avoids the following pollutants related to fossil fuel fired generation every year.

Based on 2004 Massachusetts generation data. Assumes 35% capacity factor

Impact on Local Energy Costs

• South Coast Wind will reduce the wholesale cost of electricity in the region by displacing higher priced power plants.
• South Coast Wind will work to directly reduce the cost of electricity to SouthCoast communities.

Local Jobs

• The siting and construction of wind turbines brings jobs and income to local communities.
• South Coast Wind will bring roughly 200-300 construction and related jobs and 20-30 long-term maintenance jobs to the region.

Aesthetics and Sound

• The aesthetics of wind turbines is subjective. Some people are awestruck by wind turbines, considering them graceful kinetic sculptures, while others simply see them as industrial equipment like cell towers and overhead transmission lines. To help represent how the project will look when constructed, South Coast Wind will prepare visual simulations from different locations in the bay area as part of the environmental review process.
• Modern wind farms are surprisingly quiet. The sound is often masked by the sound of the blowing wind; you will not be able to hear offshore turbines sited in Buzzards Bay, from shore.

Avian Considerations

• South Coast Wind is committed to working closely with the Massachusetts Audubon
Society and other state and federal regulatory agencies to avoid and mitigate the impact of the project on birds in the region.
• As of fall 2006, avian assesments are being conducted in the region.

Navigation

• Wind turbines will not be sited within the established commercial shipping channel in Buzzards Bay.
• Designed to be minimally visible from shore, navigation lights on the turbines will serve as becons, alerting vessels operating in Buzzards Bay of turbine locations.

Air Traffic Considerations

• Turbines will incorporate lighting as required by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). However new FAA guidlines indicate that only a minimum amount of turbines will require lighting.

Wind Power Is the Future

With an unhealthy reliance on foreign oil and the impacts of global warming becoming clearer every day, it is increasingly imperative that America takes serious steps toward development of renewable energy. Wind power offers domestic energy generation that is clean, reliable, free and proven to be compatible with humans and the surrounding habitat.

Local and national energy demands continue to grow. In 2006, ISO New England, Inc., manager of the region's power grid, issued rolling blackout and brownout warnings. New England's continued dependence on natural gas and oil-fired resources only increases our vulnerability by subjecting the grid to volatile fuel prices. Wind power offers a clean, renewable source of energy that produces no waste products, no greenhouse gas emissions, and supply is not subject to the interest of fuel cartels. Wind power may not provide the answer to all of our country's energy needs, but it is clearly part of the solution.

About Jay Cashman, Inc.

Jay Cashman, Inc. (JCI) is a comprehensive construction company based in Massachusetts with a well-established track record within the marine, heavy civil, dredging and environmental construction industries. JCI has vast experience in both civil and marine construction and is known for successfully working in rugged and geo-technically demanding environments. The company played a key role in many of the state’s most prominent large scale in-water and water’s edge construction projects including Boston’s Deer Island Treatment Facility and the Central Artery Tunnel. Locally, JCI has worked on the Taunton Nemasket Bridge, the Wareham Bridge, the Brightman Street Bridge and the Duxbury Beach Jetties.

In the spring of 2006 JCI was selected through a formal RFP process for the turnkey supply and installation of a 660 kW wind turbine generator installed at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) campus in Buzzards Bay, MA. The Vestas V47 wind turbine generator sits on a 50-meter tower and has a blade tip height of 73.5 meters. The turbine is estimated to generate 25% of MMA's power requirements, for a savings of $200,000 per year in electricity costs.

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