April 28, 2021 — They could not all go in to the meeting of the Cape May County Commissioners on Tuesday afternoon, but opponents of a planned offshore wind farm knew they were heard when the members of county government came out to them.
About 50 people gathered outside the county administration building on a sunny spring day, most carrying signs in opposition to wind turbines off the New Jersey coast. Ocean Wind, the furthest along of what could be multiple offshore wind projects, would mean 99 turbines placed 15 miles off the coast, powering more than a half-million homes starting in late 2024.
Danish energy giant Ørsted won the state contract for that project. A public comment period by the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management on the proposal concludes Thursday.
On Tuesday, the county government approved a resolution stating that Ørsted and partner PSEG failed to communicate with the county and raised concerns about the impact of the proposal on tourism and the commercial fishing industry.
At a workshop meeting earlier in the day, board members heard from representatives of the local fishing industry, including Greg DiDomenico of Lund’s Fisheries near the Cape May Inlet. He said he and others involved in commercial fishing wanted to like the wind power project.
But he argued the project does not take the needs of his industry or the safety of those working on commercial fishing vessels into account.