July 26, 2019 — Our first offshore wind question is from Samual Freeman: Why are offshore wind developers allowed to destroy commercial fishing gear and not be responsible for the cost to find and replace this?
So, there’s a lot going on in this question. Fishermen are worried that wind farms are going to bull-doze their way into their territory and destroy their livelihoods. But here’s what we know: if a fisherman can prove that gear is damaged as the result of a wind farm, the wind developer will be responsible for compensating the fisherman for the cost of the gear and any potential lost income.
Every developer has a slightly different process in how they handle these claims. But in the end, if a fisherman’s claim is found to be valid, the developer must pay for the damage. It’s the law.
What else are wind developers doing to compensate fishermen for any potential lost or damaged gear?
So, Vineyard Wind — which is expected to build the country’s first large scale offshore wind farm — has setup a compensation plan for Rhode Island and Massachusetts fishermen which includes a trust fund to pay them for any unexpected expenses like damaged fishing gear.
Fishermen say the fund doesn’t have enough money in it to truly compensate fishermen in the event of an accident. But Vineyard Wind has told me there will be no financial limits on valid loss gear claims…even if it exceeds the trust fund amount.