According to the Globe, if the court decision had gone the other way “the project would probably have been delayed indefinitely or killed outright because several permits would have had to come from a community and a regional agency that oppose the project.”

Cape Wind is still waiting for the Department of Public Utilities to make a decision about the power purchase agreement that the project signed with National Grid.

The court’s decision cannot be appealed but opposition Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound vowed to continue its broader fight against the proposed 130-turbine wind farm, the Associated Press reported.

“This is far from over, despite this ruling,” said Audra Parker, the group’s director.

Fishermen’s Energy Plans To Launch Turbines From Camden

New Jersey-based Fishermen’s Energy plans to bring offshore wind turbines from Camden, NJ, through the Delaware Bay and then up the coast to the company’s first project off Atlantic City, the Press of Atlantic City reported yesterday.

The six-turbine project — which is planned for state waters — could begin construction next year, the paper reported.

MA Working on Offshore Wind Pact Gosnold

State officials and representatives from the sparsely populated island of Cuttyhunk are drafting a Memorandum of Understanding to guide development of the first offshore wind development in Massachusetts waters, the Martha’s Vineyard Gazette reported.

After the state’s ocean management plan identified an area near Cuttyhunk last year for offshore wind development, local leaders said they would be willing to host a wind farm.  Officials from the island’s only town — Gosnold — are gathering feedback from residents but will not share any information on the process until the MOU is complete, according to the Gazette.

Massachusetts officials are working with the town of Gosnold to develop an offshore wind leasing process for that region in southeastern Massachusetts, a senior ocean planning official said today.

State officials are also developing rules and regulations to implement the overall Ocean Management Plan, the nation’s first attempt to zone offshore wind development in state waters and comprehensively manage ocean resources.  That plan identified two sites for large-scale offshore wind development, southeast of Gosnold and south of Martha’s Vineyard.  Gosnold, with a population of less than 100, has embraced the plan.  Officials on Martha’s Vineyard were more skeptical and were given the right to determine the “appropriate scale” of any development in their waters.

“We are working with the town of Gosnold to develop the process going forward that could lead to an RFR for that designated site,” said Deerin Babb-Brott, the assistant secretary for oceans in the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.  “The Martha’s Vineyard Commission is currently developing planning guidelines for wind development in their jurisdictional waters … any future development will be predicated on the outcome of their planning process.”

Sources in Gosnold confirmed that there have been meetings between town and state officials, although they said that nothing concrete has been decided at this point.  Another meeting is scheduled for early March.

Babb-Brott said implementation of the Plan will take place on two tracks, substantive and administrative.

“On the administrative side, some rulemaking and internal regulatory work will be done in the coming months to layer the Plan into the state’s regulatory plan” he said.

On the substantive track, Babb-Bott highlighted the federal-state task force that is helping with the leasing process.

“The task force has met twice already and is developing a request for interest for areas in federal waters off of Massachusetts that will be available to potential developers,” he said.

State officials are also improving and refining their data on ocean use and habitat, as required by the Plan.  Researchers are gathering more data on human uses of Massachusetts waters, such as recreational boating, recreational fishing and commercial fishing.  The state is working with researchers from the University of Massachusetts to refine their ocean current circulation model.  Babb-Brott pointed out that the current work on science and data requirements is funded through a $2 million grant from the Massachusetts Ocean Partnership.

The plan, released Monday, zoned state waters for offshore wind development and is being promoted as the first of its kind in the country. It set aside two areas in the south of the state for large-scale commercial development and set out a framework for smaller projects elsewhere in Massachusetts.  State waters extend three miles from the shoreline.

The Conservation Law Foundation, an environmental advocacy group that had been critical of concessions to local authorities over offshore wind zones, described the final plan in glowing terms.

“This plan is a milestone for Massachusetts and the country,” said Dr. Priscilla Brooks, director of the foundation’s Ocean Conservation Program.

Richard Delaney, executive director at the Center for Coastal Studies in Provincetown, Massachusetts, took a similar position.

Energy and Environment Secretary Ian “Bowles and Assistant Secretary Deerin Babb-Brott and staff did yeomen’s work to develop such a comprehensive and high-quality plan within the very short timeframe,” Delaney said. “The final draft also clearly indicates that the outreach and public participation process … was productive and the changes to the final plan reflect issues and concerns raised by the public. This not only improves its substance but also helps with its implementation.”

John Miller, director of the New England Marine Renewable Energy Center at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, said that he was impressed by how the plan dealt with “ambiguity in many of the science based factors” and “encourages development but allows a level of local control.” He echoed state officials who called the plan an “adaptive, living document”.

“I think the state did a great job in a short time frame of incorporating a wide variety of stakeholder inputs,” Miller said. “I think everyone would agree that it is just a start.”

Both men applauded the plan’s delegation of responsibilities to Regional Planning Authorities, which was a matter of controversy before the final plan was released.

“There is a natural conflict between renewable energy projects, whose benefits tend to be widely distributed but whose cost are often local, and local jurisdictions,” Miller said. “Resolving that kind of conflict is what politics is all about.”

Let Vineyarders Decide, a Martha’s Vineyard group that had advocated for local control over any projects in state waters near the Island, could not be reached for comment.

Delaney said he has long supported the delegation of offshore wind regulation to local authorities, “especially with Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard because it acknowledges their existing authority, regional understanding and ability to engage decision-makers at a local level.”

“I believe that the changes represent a creative balance for sharing the responsibility for managing ocean resources,” he added.

Massachusetts delegated regulation of some offshore wind development to local officials today in the final draft of the highly anticipated Ocean Management Plan. The plan, which was required by the Massachusetts Oceans Act of 2008, zones state waters for large-scale offshore wind development and is being touted as the first offshore wind-zoning plan in the country.

The plan designates two areas, one off of the Elizabeth Islands and one south of Nomans Land, near Martha’s Vineyard, as zones for large-scale offshore wind development. In a move hinted at by administration officials after the release of the Draft Ocean Management Plan, the final plan also grants regional planning authorities the clout to define the appropriate scale of renewable energy projects in state waters near their communities. Wind advocates are concerned that delegating regulatory authority to local officials could severely limit or stop offshore wind development in state waters.

While state officials granted the Martha’s Vineyard Commission oversight power on large-scale offshore wind projects, they specifically exempted the offshore wind zone near Cuttyhunk Island from local regulation. Cuttyhunk residents have expressed a willingness to host a commercial wind farm, while Martha’s Vineyard officials say that they have jurisdiction over the small community and its waters. The decision could pave the way for offshore wind development near the 86-resident town.

“Development of a commercial-scale wind energy facility shall be permitted in this area (near Cuttyhunk Island) subject to reasonable conditions developed in consultation with local officials,” the plan read.

Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs Assistant Secretary for Oceans Deerin Babb-Brott, in a press release accompanying the final plan, suggested that the plan could be further adapted.

”The intent of the ocean plan is to serve as a vital, adaptive, living document that will guide stakeholders and user groups, resource managers and the public in the protection and balanced use of our marine waters,” Babb-Brott said.

Aspects of the plan are sure to be met with criticism from certain groups. The Conservation Law Foundation, an environmental watchdog, had railed against delegating any authority over wind developments to local officials. Let Vineyarders Decide, a Martha’s Vineyard advocacy group, sought local approval for any offshore wind development, and may be irked that the offshore wind zone near Cuttyhunk Island is beyond their control.

Massachusetts will publicly release the final draft of the highly anticipated Ocean Management Plan early next week, according to state officials. The Plan, touted by officials as the first of its kind in the nation, will zone state waters for large-scale offshore wind development.

The Massachusetts Oceans Act required Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles to submit a final draft of the Plan no later than Dec. 31. The agency plans to publicly distribute the Plan on Monday, Jan. 4, according to Kate Plourd, EEA assistant press secretary.

The draft ocean plan identified two proposed Wind Energy Areas southwest of the Elizabeth Islands and near the southern end of Nomans Land Island. Under the draft Plan, each Wind Energy Area could be used as the location for a large-scale commercial wind farm.

The draft, released during the summer, was met by criticism from several groups. Let Vineyarders Decide was formed on Martha’s Vineyard to block the Ocean Plan. The organization has advocated for the Martha’s Vineyard Commission to retain regulatory control over any developments in their waters.

On the other side of the issue, the Conversation Law Foundation has expressed concern over Bowles’ promise that the final Plan will delegate some offshore wind permitting to local regulatory bodies. The CLF argued that delegation of permitting is not allowed by the enabling legislation and will effectively block offshore wind development. The CLF said that an effective plan would need comprehensive state regulation instead of piecemeal oversight by jurisdiction. Additionally, the Federal Fish and Wildlife Service asked for more data on the impact of potential development on migratory animals.

One of the most anticipated questions to be answered Monday is whether Bowles will heed the CLF’s legal warning, or follow through on his promise for more local control. One thing, however, is certain: the disparity in positions between the two groups ensures that one will be disappointed.