Salazar sets deadline on wind project and sacred site

Environment

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar set a March 1 deadline for the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe and the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe to reach an agreement with the developer of a proposed wind farm in Massachusetts.

The tribe oppose the Cape Wind project, saying it will block their view of Nantucket Sound. The tribes are also worried about the impact on sacred and cultural sites in the sound, which used to be dry land and features prominently in Wampanoag history.

The National Park Service says the site should be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Salazar said he will take tribal views into account when making a final decision on the project.

“America’s vast offshore wind resources offer exciting potential for our clean energy economy and for our nation’s efforts to reduce our dependence on foreign oil,” Salazar said in a press release. “But as we begin to develop these resources, we must ensure that we are doing so in the right way and in the right places. The Keeper’s finding that Nantucket Sound is eligible for listing in the National Register provides information that will help us to undertake final consultations and analysis of potential impacts of wind development on historic and cultural resources in Nantucket Sound."

Get the Story:
For Cape Cod Wind Farm, New Hurdle Is Spiritual (The New York Times 1/5)
Wind farm faces new roadblock (The Cape Cod Times 1/5)
More than Cape Wind affected by historic label (The Boston Globe 1/6)
Park Service’s ruling not Sound, says gov (The Boston Herald 1/6)