Check this out, from yesterday, and ask yourself, is there any reason Virginia can’t do this?
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy on Tuesday signed an executive order backing a goal of 7.5 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2035, more than doubling the state’s existing 3.5-gigawatt target for 2030.
By the mid-2030s, offshore wind could provide New Jersey with half of its electricity, Murphy said in a speech alongside former Vice President Al Gore. “No other renewable energy resource provides us either the electric generation or economic growth potential of offshore wind,” Murphy said.
…New Jersey is competing with states across New England and the mid-Atlantic region for offshore wind supply-chain investment and jobs. Only New York has a more ambitious deployment target, legislated at 9 gigawatts for 2035.
Amazing, huh? But is it possible here in Virginia? In short – absolutely yes! Because, here in Virginia, as a 2018 report by Environment America pointed out, Virginia’s offshore wind power potential is a whopping 1.4 times our entire current power consumption, and nearly enough to power the state even if we electrify transportation and heating! Also see here, which points out: according to Oceana, “Virginia’s coastline would modestly allow for the development of 16 gigawatts of offshore wind power in economically recoverable areas. This offshore wind power could generate at least 83 percent of Virginia’s current electricity generation, displace about 82 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and power approximately 5.5 million average homes annually.”
So yeah, New Jersey is shooting for 7.5 gigawatts of offshore wind, while Virginia has more than twice that – 16 gigawatts – in economically recoverable offshore wind potential. So, again, is there any reason why Virginia can’t at least match New Jersey on this???
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