IRVING, N.Y. — Crashing waves, footprints in the sand, and oceanic-like views are just a few of the sights you can expect when you spend a day at Sunset Bay.
But they’re also the sights that lawmakers fear may soon be tarnished.
“This is the gem of Western New York, and we need to protect it,” said New York State Assemblymember David DiPietro.
State and local lawmakers across Erie and Chautauqua counties gathered at Cabana Sam’s in Irving Wednesday afternoon to once again call for wind turbines to be kept out of Lake Erie.
The lawmakers urged the adoption of federal and state proposals that would effectively prevent the addition of these turbines.
The push follows efforts from other lawmakers downstate to try to add these turbines to Western New York’s body of water to work toward the state’s goal of making 70% of New York’s energy green by 2030. A senate bill was also introduced in May 2023 that would establish a wind turbine pilot project in Lake Erie.
“This is not about green energy,” New York State Senator Pat Gallivan said. “The only green involved in this is money.”
The resurfaced calls come just days after beaches in Nantucket were forced to close following truckload's worth of fiberglass from a broken wind turbine washing up on shore.
That’s just one example of the negative impacts these turbines can have, officials say, who cited a study by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, which concluded wind turbines should not be located in the Great Lakes right now because of a lack of unique benefit and environmental risks.
Lawmakers’ main concern is how much of Lake Erie’s water makes up the region’s drinking water. The fear is that adding these turbines could lead to toxins contaminating that supply.
It’s the same concern that Mark Twichell has, a Fredonia resident who worries both his water supply and the lake he spent almost every summer on could be changed.
“I want this environment to be protected. I do not want to destroy the environment in order to save it,” he said.
Congressman Nick Langworthy has introduced federal legislation — the Lakes Before Turbines Act — that would prohibit developers from utilizing tax credits for the construction of wind installations on the Great Lakes. These projects aren’t feasible without government subsidies, so this measure would effectively stop developers from pursuing them.
Senator George Borrello also sponsored legislation at the state level that would establish a moratorium on the construction or placement of wind turbines in the Great Lakes.
Neither bill has passed, but both lawmakers are optimistic about their progress next legislative session.