Albemarle Tradewinds February 2017 Web Final Opt

OR E ORCE OR OCA NE PAE HROGHO HE A
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Feds set offshore wind energy farm auction for March
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The federal government plans to hold an auction
later this winter of 122,405 acres offs the northern
Outer Banks for the development of wind energy
farms.
Nine companies have been chosen by the U.S.
Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Ocean
Energy Management to participate in the auction
scheduled for March 16.
The plans for potential wind farms off the North
Carolina coast have been under study for several
years by the U.S. Department of the Interior and the
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
The two agencies worked with a task force that
included state entities to designate the Kitty Hawk
Wind Energy area, which encompasses 21.5 blocks
along the Outer Continental Shelf.
Beginning about 24 miles offshore, the area extends
generally about 25 miles to the southeast, according
to a statement from the Department of the Interior.
The area was moved farther offshore at the urging
of the Town of Kitty Hawk.
The BOEM has deemed nine companies as
qualifi ed to participate in the lease sale: Avangrid
Renewables, LLC, Enbridge Holdings (Green Energy)
LLC, Shell WindEnergy Inc., Northland Power
America Inc., Wind Future LLC, Outer Banks Ocean
Energy, LLC, PNE Wind USA, Inc., Statoil Wind US
LLC and wpd offshore Alpha LLC.
The bidders must still meet a series of criteria before
they can place bids in the online auction, which
includes posting a $450,000 deposit by Feb. 16.
The BOEM held information sessions locally last
year. After the leases are awarded, more study and
planning will be required if a company wants to
move ahead with construction.
“This is a signifi cant milestone for North Carolina
and our country as we continue to make progress
on diversifying our nation’s energy portfolio,” said
BOEM acting director Walter Cruickshank.
While offshore wind farms are common overseas,
the U.S. is still in the early stages of developing
them. The nation’s first offshore wind farm was
recently went into operation off the coast of Rhode
Island.
To date, BOEM has held six competitive lease
sales, which have generated over $58 million in bids
for more than one million acres in federal waters,
the statement said.
More information on the proposal can be found at
www.boem.gov/North-Carolina.
A wind turbine off the coast of Scotland. (BOEM)
“Prior to capitalism, the way people
amassed great wealth was by looting,
plundering and enslaving their fellow man.
Capitalism made it possible to become
wealthy by serving your fellow man.”
― Walter E. Williams
Pair of Currituck medics save man who jumped from bridge
Quick actions by a pair of medics with Currituck Emergency
Medical Services saved a man Thursday night
who jumped from the J.P. Knapp Bridge in Coinjock,
and survived a fall of more than 65 feet.
They were unable to reach the man safely, but
Daneker’s personal boat just happened to be moored
at nearby Coinjock Marina.
Law enforcement found a running vehicle parked
on top of the bridge that carries U.S. 158 over the
Intracoastal Waterway around 11:30 p.m. and heard
screaming from below, according to Currituck Fire and
EMS deputy chief Tim Riley.
The man was clinging to a piling in the middle of the
Coinjock Cut of the Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal,
Riley said.
“Currituck County paramedics Jordan Daneker and
Bryan Roberts responded to the base of the bridge and
saw the patient struggling in the cold water,” Riley said.
The ambulance crew drove around to the other side,
boarded the boat and were able to quickly pull the man
from the 45-degree water, took him to shore and began
treatment for hypothermia.
Daneker and Roberts then transported the patient to
Sentara Albemarle Medical Center in Elizabeth City,
where he arrived in stable condition.
“Daneker and Roberts’ quick thinking saved this person’s
life,” Riley said.
Jordan Daneker and Bryan Roberts. (Currituck EMS)
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