Frequently Asked Questions

As New York State continues its effort to transition from fossil fuels to low emission energy generation, the benefits of wind power are clear: clean air, new jobs, and support for our local communities. Offshore wind power is clean and safe and is more efficient than onshore wind power due to stronger more consistent winds and less interference from surrounding structures and geography

Western New York has tremendous resources for offshore wind. Along with the obvious benefits of Lake Erie, WNY also has a highly-skilled workforce to fill the jobs that offshore wind power will bring to WNY, and the infrastructure needed to make offshore wind in Lake Erie successful. Also, New York State’s moves toward renewable energy and offshore wind is well underway. There are currently five offshore wind projects in development in NYS – all are downstate. Those projects will bring $12.1 billion of economic impact to downstate NY. Offshore wind in Lake Erie can provide WNY the opportunity to also benefit from offshore wind.

Lake Erie has stronger and more consistently winds than over land. Lake Erie also lays at a strategic spot within the Great Lakes and can help lead the Great Lakes to a brighter and cleaner energy future.

NYSERDA is currently conducting a feasibility study that will ensure the safety and reliability of offshore wind before any turbines can be constructed. Once the results of NYSERDA’s feasibility study are release, we will have a much better idea of what needs to be done for a freshwater offshore wind project in Lake Erie to benefit both our environment and the WNY economy.

As with all development in NYS, any proposed freshwater offshore wind project in Lake Erie will have to go through the most robust environmental review process in the country. Along with the fact that modern wind turbines are design to minimize any negative impacts on birds and bats, exhaustive studies of migratory bird patterns and many other studies will be conducted to ensure that offshore wind in Lake Erie do not have a negative impact on bird and bat populations.

Offshore turbines (different from land-based turbines) are designed to prevent any fluids from being discharged into the water with three levels of containment to minimize risk of any fluid discharges. The primary systems are sealed with multiple sensors that monitor fluid performance and containment. The secondary system is in the nacelle where fluid containment reservoirs are designed to capture any leaks from a primary system failure. If both primary and secondary containment fails, the bottom of the tower has a reservoir to contain any fluids originating from the nacelle. Most importantly, all of the fluids used in the turbine are biodegradable. It's worth noting that similar to any vessel on the lakes, the US Coast Guard requires a spill response protocol to be in place in the event of any discharge of any kind.

Offshore wind in Lake Erie will create thousands of green energy jobs and pump millions of dollars into the WNY economy. WNY also has significant manufacturing capabilities which can be utilized in the wind turbine supply chain. This will provide WNY with an opportunity to participate in the growing wind power industry and become a hub for the offshore wind energy supply chain.

Wind turbines have been installed and operating for over 10 years in freshwater lakes in the Netherlands and Sweden. Studies conducted by government agencies, academic researcher, and industry organization have shown that there has been no adverse impacts on drinking water quality in freshwater lakes where offshore wind farms have been operating. Thus, freshwater offshore wind farms operating in Europe for many, many years have proven that offshore wind can and has been developed responsibly in freshwater lakes that are a source of drinking water.

Experience from offshore wind projects in the US (Block Island Wind Farm and Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind) shows improvements in fishing around the wind turbines, confirming similar experience around wind turbines in European offshore windfarms. More information on how recreational and commercial fishermen can not only co-exist, but thrive in waters with offshore wind turbines see our LEOWA Newsletter on fishing.

No, although modern offshore wind turbine blades do contain a small amount of plastics, those plastics are composite material that consists of thermosetting plastics, which do not produce microplastics. Thermosetting plastics (or polymers) are chosen as the material best suited to be included in composite material with glass fiber or carbon fiber blades in order to enhance aerodynamics, provide high stiffness, have a low density to minimize weight and wear on other turbine parts, withstand high temperatures, and minimize material fatigue on the blades to increase durability. A study performed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in 2021 showed that due to these material characteristics, modern wind turbine blade composition does not include materials that create microplastics.

Over time, the powerful forces of nature can cause the leading edge of wind turbine blades to erode slightly. A maximum of 150 grams (a little over ½ a cup) of erosion can take place on the largest wind turbines in a year’s time. The eroded materials are chemically inactive and do not release any harmful chemicals into nature. Moreover, because the surface of wind turbine blades are the most exposed to natural forces, great care has been taken by wind turbine blade manufacturers to construct blades in a way that maximized surface strength and minimizes wear and tear on the surface on wind turbine blades. A report by Norwea in 2021 explains that modern offshore wind turbine blades are designing in a way that any surface materials that may be eroded due to leading edge erosion do not contain materials or chemicals that could be harmful to the environment.

Yes, there have been freshwater offshore wind farms in Europe since 2010 when a freshwater offshore wind farm went into operation in Lake Vänern in Sweden, which is the largest lake in the European Union. The largest freshwater offshore wind farm is Windpark Fryslân in the Netherlands, which began operation in 2021.