First, the proposal to build an offshore wind farm is big: 150 turbines generating enough electricity to meet 29 percent of the needs of Delmarva Power's Standard Offer Service (retail) customers.
It would be new: the first offshore wind project in the country.
It was unexpected. A year ago, few would have predicted that wind power would have been chosen through the bidding process.
It connects global concerns with a local perspective. Delaware would be particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels brought on by global warming.
Most significantly, the wind power story presents a sharp contrast between the new and the old.
New is something Delaware doesn't do very well. As the "News Journal" editorial board put it, last week's lack of decision on wind power was "another victory for mediocrity."
The wind power proposal requires new thinking. The conventional wisdom is that environmental benefits come at a price. But if fossil fuel costs continue to rise, the wind farm would bring a measure of price stability to Delaware's energy portfolio.
It heralds the creation of what the "News Journal" calls a new "grass-roots environmental movement in Delaware." I had not heard of or met most of the activists a year ago. They have brought a new sophistication to discussions about environmental issues in areas including health, epidemiology and economics. As Nick DiPasquale said to the "Cape Gazette", "This isn't just the yogurt and granola crowd."
I won't predict whether the wind power proposal will get the green light or not in 2008. But either way, the story will continue to highlight the ways Delaware is, or is not, changing.
Source: our-green-energy.blogspot.com
