Fishermen’s Energy Receives Final State Permits

CAPE MAY – Fishermen’s Energy announced that they have received approval from the New Jersey State House Commission for a Green Acres permit and the Tidelands Council for an electric line easement and turbine locations license required to build its demonstration-scale six turbine Fishermen’s Atlantic City Windfarm. These were the remaining State permits required for the project to commence construction. This wind energy project will be located in New Jersey State waters off the coast of Atlantic City. Fishermen’s Energy also announced the completion of a year of pre-construction avian and marine mammal monitoring, keeping the project on target for a Fall 2012 commissioning.
“The Fishermen’s Atlantic City Windfarm is an exciting project that fully demonstrates how renewable energy projects can be developed in an environmentally responsible manner. Fishermen’s Energy has worked diligently to ensure that all regulatory and environmental concerns raised by State and Federal agencies are completely addressed. This project will serve as an example of how offshore wind projects should be pursued” said Chuck Harman, Principal Ecologist and Project Manager for AMEC Earth & Environmental (“AMEC”). Under contract with Fishermen’s Energy, AMEC has provided environmental engineering support for their initial proposal submission to the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities.
In 2009, Fishermen’s Energy contracted with Geo-Marine, Inc. (“GMI”) to provide support to Fishermen’s Energy during the development and permitting process of the project. GMI recently completed 12 months of pre-construction avian, marine mammal, and sea turtle surveys for the site. “The goal is to provide spatial and temporal data on avian, marine mammal, and sea turtle species utilizing these offshore waters as the beginning of a multi-year study for evaluating the potential ecological impacts of the windfarm. This effort will fulfill the data needs identified in the project’s New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (“NJDEP”) permit application, as well as NJDEP’s species-survey requirements outlined in the Technical Manual for Evaluating Wildlife Impacts of Wind Turbines Requiring Coastal Permits”, commented Christopher Clark, GMI’s Director, Renewable Energy Services.
About Fishermen’s Energy:
Fishermen’s Energy is a developer of offshore wind energy projects, founded by New Jersey commercial fishermen to respond to the public’s need to develop the ocean for renewable wind energy. Fishermen’s goal is to turn the North Atlantic coastal waters into an unmatched source of clean energy, while maintaining a vibrant commercial fishing industry. Fishermen’s Energy has partnered with experienced professionals in the renewable energy and the offshore wind business community to propose, plan, and build responsible projects to serve the public’s need for safe renewable energy.
Fishermen’s Energy intends to harvest the wind and the sea, side by side, in an environmentally responsible and sustainable manner.