Simmons, program manager at one of 10 advocacy groups now a part of OWF4NC, knew that the formation of the coalition could be a major step forward in the state’s battle against climate change.

Most individuals have heard of wind energy as one of the leading renewable energy sources, but a subset known as offshore wind energy is emerging as a promising power source.

Wind energy uses turbines to capture kinetic energy or energy generated from movement. As air pushes turbines into motion, conversion technology takes the energy generated from the spinning turbines to produce clean and renewable electricity.

Offshore wind energy takes place in bodies of water where high wind speeds generate more clean energy.

“Offshore wind is the best option for large-scale renewable energy,” Simmons said. “The average-sized project can generate as much as 10 times the average large-scale solar or onshore wind facility, and equals that of a traditional fossil fuel plant.”

N.C. prime candidate for offshore wind projects

 Currently, North Carolina has one major land-based, wind energy project and no offshore projects. However, the coast of North Carolina makes the state a prime candidate for major offshore wind energy projects in the next few years.

North Carolina’s Governor, Roy Cooper, has recently expanded his Clean Energy Plan with the signing of Executive Order 218 that calls for North Carolina to produce 2.8 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030 and 8 gigawatts by 2040. If the state could generate 8 gigawatts of offshore wind energy, that would be enough to power 2.3 million homes with clean energy, all from turbines off of North Carolina’s coast.

“In recent developments by state legislatures, we’ve set a state goal to be carbon neutral by 2050,” Simmons said. “In order to reach that carbon neutrality, offshore wind will be essential in North Carolina.”

The formation of the OWF4NC coalition comes at a time when offshore wind energy is needed the most to help limit fossil fuel usage and slow climate change.

“We need action from coalitions and advocates from across the state to get the ball rolling on investing in offshore wind energy if we want to lessen our usage of fossil fuels and truly have some impact on the fight against climate change, which we need sooner rather than later with the way things are going,” Simmons said.

Challenges to the development of offshore wind farms

But inevitable challenges in the development of these projects have continued to surface.

“These projects take an incredible amount of time and research before even moving into actually building offshore wind farms,” said Derb Carter, a leader in the North Carolina office of the Southern Environmental Law Center. “There are concerns with impacts in fishing patterns, environmental risks, the flying patterns of birds and obstruction of ocean views. You’re also having to bring construction tools out into the ocean and assemble these massive turbines which generate a lot of noise pollution for the marine life in those areas.”

Even with challenges in planning and building offshore wind farms, advocates are working to ensure that the public understands how offshore wind energy can hasten the transition from reliance on fossil fuels to the use of clean energy.

“One of the purposes of the OWF4NC coalition is to raise awareness for how important the installation of offshore wind farms will be in North Carolina to reduce our use of fossil fuels,” Simmons said. “This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for us to make a change in climate change.”

Planning for the first offshore wind energy projects in North Carolina has already begun. Developers have identified three areas for offshore wind projects off the North Carolina coast: Kitty Hawk, Wilmington and Brunswick. These locations have been or are in the process of being leased to energy companies like Avangrid that has been a leader in offshore wind energy investment. The Kitty Hawk location was leased to Avangrid in 2017 after being studied for years by scientists and construction experts to determine how to minimize disruption to marine ecosystems during the building and operation of the wind farm.

If all goes according to plan, the Kitty Hawk offshore wind farm should begin construction in 2025 with the farm generating electricity to power grids by 2026. The farm would generate one gigawatt of wind energy enough to power 300,000 homes.

If you happen to visit the coasts of North Carolina in the next decade and see large turbines spinning miles out in the ocean, know that they could be the future for clean energy in the state and an essential component in fighting the battle against climate change.