CALIFORNIA MOVES AHEAD WITH PLANS FOR FLOATING WIND TURBINES MILES OFF ITS COASTLINE
By Kevin Stark / KQED
Following transcript is from an NPR interview
MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
California is charging ahead with plans for floating wind turbines miles off its coastline. A federal lease auction took place last month, a first for the state. The future turbines will generate enough wind to power 1.5 million homes. From member station KQED, Kevin Stark reports.
KEVIN STARK, BYLINE: California's coast - rocky bluffs running into green-black water and a completely empty horizon.
(SOUNDBITE OF WAVES CRASHING)
STARK: In the coming years, about 20 miles off the coast, state plans for two clusters of wind turbines on floating platforms. For the Biden administration, it's a cornerstone of its ambitious climate plan. For Jeff Hunerlach, it means jobs for his members.
JEFF HUNERLACH: Tens of thousands of jobs, from construction phase to operation and maintenance and supply chains.
STARK: Hunerlach is a union rep for the operating engineers in Northern California's Humboldt County. That's one of the auction areas for the offshore wind leases. California air regulators have charted an ambitious path to dramatically reduce planet-warming gas emissions over the next two decades and spur job growth.
LIANE M RANDOLPH: And there is only one way to do that.
STARK: That's the state's top air official, Liane Randolph.
RANDOLPH: Break forever our dependence on fossil fuels and move as fast as we can to a clean-energy economy.
STARK: California's goal is for five gigawatts of offshore wind capacity by 2030. That's roughly equal to the energy output of eight natural gas power plants. Sam Eaton is an executive with RWE, one of the winning developers. The company has projects in the water all around the U.K., Germany and elsewhere.
SAM EATON: California's auction really put the U.S. right at the forefront of the leading floating markets in the world.
STARK: Developers are investing tens of millions of dollars into training workers on the East Coast.
EATON: I would expect that we will see a very similar paradigm come to bear on the West Coast.
STARK: Stephanie McClellan runs the offshore wind nonprofit Turn Forward and has advised many states on offshore wind. California's sale generated $750 million last month. She says that strong signal shows developers are invested in the U.S. market.
STEPHANIE MCCLELLAN: So when we have offshore wind developers and the offshore wind industry committed to the U.S. market, it means they're going to do more for the U.S. market. We're not just sort of a little outpost.
