GLIN==> Obama Administration Hosts Great Lakes Offshore Wind Workshop in Chicago with Great Lakes Wind Collaborative

For immediate release: October 27, 2010

 

Obama Administration Hosts Great Lakes Offshore Wind Workshop in Chicago
with Great Lakes Wind Collaborative

 

http://www.glc.org/announce/10/pdf/10-27-10-Great-Lakes-Wind-Press-Relesase-
FINAL.pdf 

 

WASHINGTON - The White House Council on Environmental Quality and the U.S.
Department of Energy hosted a workshop with the Great Lakes Wind
Collaborative in Chicago on October 26 - 27, 2010, focused on the siting of
offshore wind power in the Great Lakes.  The two day workshop brought
together wind developers, Federal and state regulators, environmental
advocates, and other regional stakeholders to discuss methods for ensuring
greater clarity, certainty and coordination of Federal and state
decision-making for offshore wind development in the Great Lakes.

 

"President Obama has made an unprecedented commitment to renewable energy
development in the United States.  Increasing our wind power generation is a
critical component to building greater energy independence and creating jobs
here at home," said Nancy Sutley, Chair of the White House Council on
Environmental Quality.  "We must improve and increase the lines of
communication to bring wind development in the Great Lakes closer to
fruition."

 

"The country's vast offshore wind resources have the potential to
dramatically reduce America's dependence on fossil fuels, make us more
economically competitive, and support new manufacturing jobs in the U.S.,"
said U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu.  "By working collaboratively with
private industry and our state and Federal partners, we can help to
accelerate and support the development of wind energy in the Great Lakes."

 

More than 100 people participated in the workshop, including representatives
from Federal agencies, state governments, energy companies, state Public
Service Commissions, wind developers and manufacturers, non-profit
organizations and other industry experts.  The workshop offered participants
an opportunity to:

.         learn more about the role of various federal agencies in the
siting of offshore wind power in the Great Lakes; and

.         clarify the process by which developers, states and other
stakeholders can engage federal and state regulators in offshore wind
development in the Great Lakes

 

The workshop concluded with these stakeholders charting a path forward to
develop a collaborative process to achieve greater clarity and certainty
during federal decision making with regard to offshore wind development in
the Great Lakes.

 

"As a result of this workshop, we now have a clear understanding of the
barriers and opportunities for wind development in the Great Lakes.  We now
have a path for moving forward that brings clarity and certainty to the
process and that will benefit states, developers and the public," said Terry
Yonker, co-chair of the Great Lakes Wind Collaborative.

 

The Great Lakes Wind Collaborative is a multi-sector coalition of wind
energy stakeholders working to facilitate the sustainable development of
wind power in the binational Great Lakes region. For more information on the
Collaborative, visit www.glc.org/energy/wind.

 

Contact:   

DOE:  (202) 586-4940

CEQ:  Christine Glunz  (202) 456-3469;  Taryn Tuss  (202) 456-6998

GLWC: (734) 971.9135

 

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