OCEAN CITY, Md. – As the prospect of offshore wind projects along the coast continues, the town of Ocean City and now the Waterman's Association seem to be on the same page in declaring that they are "not for sale." That's the claim made in a statement this week by Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan.
The statement was a response to a $20 million dollar investment proposal that is aimed at supporting commercial fishing operations in Maryland.
The Memoranda of Understanding between US Wind and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources was designed to asswage concerns from the local fishing industry over plans for offshore wind.
The $20 million dollar proposal is being viewed by Mayor Meehan as a bad faith attempt to buy a solution. "Typical of US Wind's approach to Ocean City's concerns, instead of making meaningful changes to their project to protect our local fisherman, US Wind simply throws money at a problem and hopes it will go away. This is just another attempt by US Wind to buy their way around due process." Said the Ocean City Mayor.
In that same press release Mayor Meehan claims that it will actually be Maryland residents that end up footing the bill. "Just where is all of this money being promised coming from? Maryland Ratepayers will be paying a "Wind Tax" to continue to subsidize US Wind. All of this to build a project that will be neither reliable, sustainable or economically feasible." Said Meehan.
US Wind views the plan differently: "This proposal, one of the biggest investments in commercial fishing in the region, demonstrates our commitment to the fishing industry and the local community in which we'll operate," said Jeffrey Grybowski, US Wind CEO. "The funding will provide direct support to commercial and charter fishermen, grants for local businesses, and support for harbor maintenance and infrastructure. We're looking forward to continuing our work with local fishermen and the states of Maryland and Delaware to finalize this unprecedented agreement."
Despite the view of US Wind, Ocean City Mayor Meehan hasn't changed his stance. "This MOU further substantiates our lawsuit against the Department of Interior. This entire project was poorly thought out and then fast-tracked through the Federal approval process. This is just one of the many issues that were not properly addressed. We believe that the approval process also neglected to take thenegative,and long-lasting effects,to our view shed, our economy, our eco system, and national security into proper consideration." Said the Mayor.
While US Wind continues to court support for their off shore energy project it's clear that, at least right now, Mayor Meehan and Ocean City are pushing back with everything they have.