The Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound, which has taken part in numerous lawsuits related to the Cape Wind offshore project, has now filed a new suit against the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
The alliance says it placed a Freedom of Information Act request with the FAA in June 2012 and claims the agency has refused to turn over key documents regarding radar interference resulting from local-land based wind turbines.
"Several land-based wind turbines have apparently continued to cause interference in the area despite the radar upgrade. So what would be the impact of Cape Wind's 130 larger turbines?" says Audra Parker, president of the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound. "The FAA's ongoing refusal to turn over information related to the performance of the radar upgrade, despite repeated requests and deadline extensions, is extremely concerning – particularly given its significant implications on public safety."
This is the latest in a series of lawsuits by the alliance. On Jan. 22, the group filed a lawsuit regarding utility NSTAR's contract to purchase electricity from the 468 MW Cape Wind project, planned off the coast of Nantucket Island. However, Cape Wind hailed a legal victory against the alliance that same day after an appeals court upheld the FAA's approval of the project.
The offshore wind project appears to be moving forward, having entered a turbine-supply deal with Siemens and, most recently, securing a new $600 million loan from Danish export credit agency EKF.
