Story by: Brian Miles

At its 29-30 October 2009 meetings in Atlantic Beach, NC, the North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission declared utility-scale wind turbines to be a water-dependent use.  This clears the way for NC Division of Coastal Management staff to draft rules for the sighting of such turbines in state waters, and also to draft rules for bringing electrical transmission cables ashore (whether from projects in state or federal waters).  These rules will be subject to interagency review, public comment and final approval by the Commission.  Once the rules are in place, utility-scale wind turbines could be permitted in state waters without requiring developers to go through a variance process.

For more information, please contact: brian_miles@ncsu.edu.