'I don't want to rush this.' Barnstable board to vote soon on Park City Wind's cable plans

A decision about whether or not to give Avangrid Renewables the green light to land power cables from its Park City Wind project at Craigville Beach and route them under the Centerville River on the way to a proposed inland substation could be made as soon as Sept. 19.

After a two-hour discussion that included comments from a number of residents, the Barnstable Conservation Commission on Tuesday closed its hearing — continued from Aug. 8 — on the energy company's quest for permits to bring submarine cables from its 804-megawatt offshore wind farm ashore at the beach's west end. The hearing was held on Zoom and steamed via Barnstable Government Access.

The choice to close the hearing, which means no more public comment will be taken, left the residents disappointed and with lingering questions.

In an email sent to the board Wednesday morning and copied to the Times, residents Maria and Greg Gerdy said closing the hearing, instead of continuing it until Sept. 19 — which would have allowed more public comment — effectively silenced citizens' voices. They, like others, were also critical of a three-minute time limit each member of the public was given to speak during the hearing.

Residents want Barnstable's Park City hearing continued

"They were given absolutely NO opportunitiesto speak again to ask follow-up questions or observations about the hypothetical Park City Wind project," the Gerdy couple wrote, while commissioners and representatives for Park City Wind were allowed "unlimited speaking time," they said.

A continuation of the hearing would have needed to be requested by Avangrid but was not. In an email to Town Manager Mark Ells on Wednesday night, the couple further expressed their disappointment and criticized the conservation board for not pushing hard enough for a continuation.

Commission Chairman Tom Lee and other members on Tuesday night said they have enough information to vote, but Lee wanted to take it under advisement so the board could draft conditions.

"I don't want to rush this and make a mistake in terms of missing some special conditions in there," Lee said.

21-day timeframe started for Barnstable Conservation Commission for decision

By closing the hearing, the board started a 21-day statutory clock to issue a determination but got assurances from Avangrid Vice President of Development for Offshore Wind Ken Kimmell that the company would concede to an extension should the commissioners need extra time to draft and legally review their conditions.

The conservation board is considering the proposed installation of two 275-kV submarine electric transmission cables in Nantucket Sound and the onshore duct bank system at Craigville Beach and 2 Short Beach Road. The company bought the Short Beach Road property at the end of June for $430,000, according to town assessing records, with plans to demolish the house on the property.

If approved, the company plans to pass the power cables under the beach, then under the river by way of microtunneling — a trenchless construction technique. After that, the cables would be routed underground about four miles to a proposed substation on Shootflying Hill Road, then nearly a mile to the existing Eversource substation on Oak Street in West Barnstable. From there the project would connect with the ISO-NE electrical grid. Ultimately, Park City Wind will provide power to Connecticut.

Residents express worries about microtunneling under Centerville River

During Tuesday's hearing, residents again aired worries about how microtunneling under the river may negatively affect the river and wetland ecosystem, as well as about possible adverse effects on people and animals from electromagnetic fields, or EMFs, produced by the power lines under the seafloor, beach and river.

Some said more study needs to be given to recent unexplained whale deaths they worry could be linked to offshore wind development, while others raised questions about the financial viability of the project, questioned Avangrid's pursuit of a landing at Craigville Beach instead of at an existing industrial site like the power plant at the Cape Cod Canal, and worried about the possibility of contamination at the substations.

"This is very upsetting. I just can't even imagine why we are even contemplating this project," said resident Shelly Sterling, calling the project "an experiment with our town."

'Industrializing Barnstable'

"This is the line in the sand. Once you cross it, you can't go back," said fellow resident Ellen Nosal, warning that "we are industrializing Barnstable" by hosting numerous offshore power cables and "enormous electric substations."

Residents Bob and Anne Schulte raised concerns about EMFs and suggested Avangrid be required to supply a more detailed analysis of the potential impacts and to outline protections. Anne Schulte pointed out that young people often swim in the river and asked, "Would you allow your kids or grandchildren to swim in the area of the proposed electrical lines?"

Ahead of the hearing, Avangrid submitted a lengthy supplemental document addressing many of the issues initially raised when deliberations opened last month.

Jack Vaccaro, a senior consultant with Epsilon Associates, an environmental engineering and consulting firm working with Avangrid, said the project "has been thoroughly designed to minimize impacts" to the ecosystem.

Chris Long, an expert in exposure and risk assessment from Gradient Corp., also working with Avangrid, addressed EMF concerns. He said putting the lines 10 feet or deeper underground, as is proposed, "would make the effects of the EMF negligible." Further, he said, placing conduits in close proximity to others "cancels" the magnetic fields.

Regarding the project's ability to sell the power, Kimmell said "Contrary to what people have said," the project is under a power purchase contract with Connecticut. And in the event things fall through financially, which he said is very unlikely, the host community agreement with Barnstable includes "an extensive array" of business insurance policies that list the town as a beneficiary.

As they prepare to vote, some commissioners, including William Hearn and John Abodeely, called attention to the board's jurisdictional limitations. While acknowledging the residents' concerns, they noted the board lacks authority to address many of them.

Heather McCarron writes about climate change, environment, energy, science and the natural world. Reach her at hmccarron@capecodonline.com.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Barnstable conservation board plans next step on Park City Wind cables