PNM VIA AP/FILE 2014, This image provided by New Mexico power company PNM shows some of the more than five dozen giant turbines erected on a remote mesa in the state.
State leadership should ensure that there is a market in place to buy the power. By doing so, we will reduce our reliance on energy imports, which cost the state money, jobs, and control of energy pricing. And unlike the volatile cost of fossil fuels, the cost of wind power is stable.
While the region’s leading utilities hike their winter rates, and while older, coal-fired power plants continue to retire, we are at an especially pivotal moment in New England’s energy story — with significant consequences for our economy in Massachusetts.
As business and labor leaders in Massachusetts, we know that smart energy policy ensures that our companies and our workforce can turn on the lights and compete each and every day, not to mention that our pricing and production rely on a dependable and affordable supply of power.
But the state and the nation have yet to reap the environmental and economic benefits of wind energy. And we lag behind a booming wind power industry in Europe and Asia that supports more than 70 offshore wind projects and employs more than 70,000 people.
Meanwhile, as residents of a coastal state, we sit on the frontlines of sea level rise and face the constant threat of destructive storm surges. Just look at New York City after Hurricane Sandy. Choosing a new energy trajectory that prioritizes security, eliminates price volatility, creates local jobs, and promotes a healthy environment for future generations must be our focus.
Massachusetts is uniquely positioned to lead the nation toward our largest untapped renewable energy opportunity. America’s first terminal for offshore wind project assembly and deployment is being built in New Bedford, and the innovative Wind Technology Testing Center located in Charlestown is the nation’s largest facility of its kind. Now is the time to ensure a return on these investments.