RealOffShoreWind

Offshore wind is a new use of our precious oceans

Answers you can trust to questions you may have

Some new videos from our group of experts

Head to our Media page to see the rest!

Will offshore wind turbines warm surface waters?

Does offshore wind kill birds?

Will offshore wind threaten the North Atlantic Whale?

Will offshore wind turbines be visible during the day and at night?

Click on any question below to read our responses….

Economics Questions

Does Offshore Wind Affect Property Values?

Does Offshore Wind Affect Tourism?

Climate Change Questions

Does offshore wind actually help with addressing climate change/reduce emissions?

How much can offshore wind in New England contribute to addressing climate change?

Will OSW warm surface waters?

Ecology Questions

How does offshore wind affect birds?

Do electric cables from offshore wind energy sites endanger marine species?

Will OSW affect plankton?

Will OSW threaten the North Atlantic Right Whale?

Will OSW harm New England Fisheries?

Aren’t our Rhode Island and New England waterways “pristine” or “too sensitive” to handle the OSW development?

Will power lines from offshore wind pose a risk to humans?

Will OSW interfere with ocean currents?

Safety and Operational Questions

How much is known about the ecology of the northeast coastal marine systems to apply to making offshore wind as safe as possible? Is there more to be learned and how will that be paid for?

Have OSW sonar surveys caused many whales to die and wash up on Atlantic beaches?

Has the government authorized OSW developers to harass and kill whales and other marine mammals?

Will OSW interfere with wind currents like the jet stream?

Won’t turbines be ripped apart by hurricanes and come flying into the coast?

Do mariners such as fishermen and the Coast Guard have a say in OSW development? How will they navigate the physical obstacles within OSW farms?

Have the Department of Defense and other federal agencies done anything to address radar interference in OSW farms?

How well are the Block Island Wind turbines operating?

What will the wind turbines look like from shore?

Why this site?

We are oceanographers, ecosystem scientists and sociologists working to understand how humans impact and interact with the Earth. Climate change is the most pressing environmental and societal challenge our species has ever faced, and the rapid deployment of non-polluting energy such as offshore wind is the best weapon we have to fight this existential threat. The voices on this website are personal - we speak as scholars, citizens, humans - not as representatives of our employers or any other institutions.