NEW BEDFORD — New Bedford fishermen voiced serious concerns about the impact of offshore wind turbines on fish stocks and navigation at a meeting Monday with federal officials from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
The morning meeting at the city's Wharfinger building was called to provide the industry with input on the 1,300 square miles of federal waters south of Martha's Vineyard where offshore turbines are being proposed.
"We're very concerned about winter flounder spawning areas," said Ron Smolowitz of the Fisheries Survival Fund. Studies have shown large concentrations of this species in the proposed area, he said. "What about the transmission lines? Winter flounder are a sub-strate species and their eggs adhere to the bottom," he said. Little is known about the possible impact of electromagnetic frequencies on surrounding fish habitat, Smolowitz added.
Fisherman Tony Alvernaz said he is worried about the structural integrity of the turbines and their capacity to withstand ocean storms.
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