Wind power operations off Nantucket Island halted after turbine blade parts washed ashore

NANTUCKET, Massachusetts (AP) — The federal government has ordered a developer of offshore wind turbines off the island of Nantucket, a popular summer destination for Massachusetts tourists, to cease operations after pieces of a damaged turbine blade washed up on beaches.

A spokesman for the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said Wednesday that Vineyard Wind’s operations have been suspended until it can be determined whether the “blade damage” is affecting other turbine blades in the complex. As a result, power production at the leased area has been halted and the installation of new wind turbine generators is also on hold.

Nantucket officials said all beaches on the island’s south shore have reopened after the company collected six truckloads of trash. The company said the trash consisted of nontoxic fiberglass fragments and the washed-up pieces were one square foot or less in size.

“We are making progress in recovering the debris and are mobilizing even more resources on the island to move the cleanup forward as quickly as possible,” Vineyard Wind CEO Klaus Moeller said in a statement. He urges people to report debris sightings to the company or city authorities and not to take matters into their own hands. “The public can trust that we will be here as long as it takes to get the job done and ensure the beaches are cleaned.”

But late Wednesday, the company said it had found more debris in the water and expressed concern that the integrity of the turbine’s damaged blade (known as the GE Vernova blade) may have been compromised.

“Although part of the blade is still attached to the turbine, we believe the likelihood is increasing that it could become detached soon,” the company said in a statement.

Vineyard Wind said it was working with the U.S. Coast Guard to maintain a 500-meter (1,640-foot) safety zone around the affected offshore turbine. It also informed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and state and local authorities of the latest development.

“Vineyard Wind will continue to work closely with its state, federal, local and tribal partners to respond to this evolving situation while continuing to prioritize the safety of its personnel, contractors and the environment,” the company said.

The regional power grid operator ISO New England said it was aware of the incident but would have no impact.

“New England’s power grid remains reliable,” said Matthew Kakley, spokesman for ISO New England, in a statement. “Our grid operators are planning for unexpected issues on the grid, such as resource outages.”

Vineyard Wind, a joint venture between Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, said no personnel or third parties were near the turbine at the time of the damage. It said in a statement that blade manufacturer and installation contractor GE “will now analyze the root cause of the incident.”

The project’s giant wind turbines began feeding electricity into the grid last winter. The project said it would deploy trained crews to collect the debris in the coming days.