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Dominion & Governor McDonnell: An opportunity to lead
Bringing offshore wind power to Virginia will require the leadership of the commonwealth's largest power provider, Dominion Virginia Power, and Governor Bob McDonnell. Dominion owns much of Virginia's transmission capacity and has a great deal of political clout, so a new Virginia offshore wind industry would flourish with the company on board. In turn, Dominion itself has much to gain financially by positioning itself as a leader in the burgeoning American offshore wind energy industry.
But Dominion can't achieve this success alone. Governor McDonnell can make Virginia the "Clean Energy Capital of the East Coast" by embracing its offshore wind potential. The governor himself has said that allowing the private sector to explore Virginia's offshore natural resources and bring new energy options to Virginia is common sense. Governor McDonnell should promote Virginia's pro-energy, pro-business climate by doing everything within his power to promote the development of wind farms off Virginia's coast. This includes removing policy barriers and creating incentives for the development of wind energy.
Why offshore wind?
Wind is a clean, endless, domestic energy source. With one of the best ports in the world within its borders, Virginia in particular possesses outstanding offshore wind power potential, but the commonwealth isn't yet taking advantage of one of its most valuable, sustainable natural resources. So what exactly makes offshore wind such an outstanding energy resource?
- ECONOMIC BENEFITS: Recent research shows that fully developing Virginia's offshore wind resources could create 10,000 jobs over 20 years, while bringing $19 billion in GDP to the commonwealth over just the first ten years.
- PRICE STABILITY: Because the fuel (wind) is free, offshore wind power offers the ability to lock in affordable energy prices for the long-term. This helps to prevent ever-rising fossil fuel costs from hurting Virginia's small businesses, consumers, and those on a fixed income.
- CLEANER AIR: Just one 600-megawatt offshore wind farm could avoid harmful emissions of 2.5 billion pounds of carbon dioxide, more than 14 million pounds of sulfur dioxide, and 5 million pounds of nitrogen oxides annually. This is the equivalent of removing 220,000 cars from our highways or planting 6.3 million trees.
- HEALTH BENEFITS: Offshore wind farms will generate energy without emitting pollutants that harm the health of children, adults and the elderly. Pollutants from fossil fuel power plants have been linked to a number of health problems, including asthma attacks, lung cancer, heart attacks, strokes, neurological development risks and premature death.
- CARBON-FREE: Emissions from the burning of dirty fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas are the leading cause of man-made climate change. Offshore wind energy does not emit carbon into the atmosphere.
- NATIONAL SECURITY: Developing our vast supply of domestic wind energy enhances our national security by reducing our dependence on oil from Middle Eastern countries suffering from civil unrest. Even the Department of Defense realizes this, which is why they've committed to a renewable energy goal of 25% by 2025.
- Email the CEO: Ask Dominion Virginia Power CEO Tom Farrell to develop offshore wind power
- Pledge your business's support: Are you a business owner? Please sign our business sign-on letter in support of offshore wind energy for Virginia.
- Take a photo: We're collecting photos from Virginians like you who support offshore wind! Click here for more information.
- Get involved: If you're interested in getting involved with this campaign, please contact our Hampton Roads Organizer Hannah Wiegard at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
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