Green Options

There are only about 325 North Atlantic right whales left in the world, and approximately 80 of them have assembled in the waters near Cape Cod.

They have come together to feed on an unusually huge population of zooplankton. The whales normally follow zooplankton from Canada as they are moved with ocean currents down to the Massachusetts coast. This year the extra numbers of zooplankton are attracting a record congregation of North Atlantic rights, which are one of the most endangered species in the world.

The Cape Wind project in Massachusetts cleared its biggest hurdle to date on Friday when the U.S. Minerals Management Service gave final environmental approval to the 450 megawatt offshore wind farm.

As news broke late last week that there might be yet another delay in the eight year battle to get Cape Wind approved, I had to wonder if Kennedy’s hand was somehow behind it. And according to reports, that is at least plausible.

Cape Cod has been on my mind a lot lately. I’ve just finished Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential, which included a vivid depiction of the Provincetown restaurant scene. As a childhood frequenter of the Cape, I have fond memories of eating my way up and down the elbow. The fried clam shacks, Portuguese fish stews and fresh lobsters are essential pieces of the landscape, inspired by a strong and historical tradition of living off the sea. To eat on Cape Cod is to understand how food informs culture and strengthens community.

An entire army of day fisherman have, for decades, gone out into the deep green Atlantic, returning at dusk with enough fresh cod, haddock and bass to support a family. Beginning in the 1500s, Portuguese fishermen from Cape Verde and the Canary islands set up fishing shacks to take advantage of the rich summer months (and the Kennedys thought they were the first to summer on the Cape…) Eventually, these fisherman began to make their permanent homes along this stretch of New England coast as they discovered the abundance of year-round fish stocks.

But now, despite its decidedly nautical culture, the Cape is suffering from a deficiency of fish.

Cape Wind opposition leader, Charles Vinick is preparing to leave his post. Vinick, president of the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound, the well-funded opposition organization of the proposed Cape Wind energy project, has indicated that he would “transition” out of the position within a month.

Even if you haven’t closely followed the protracted political saga swirling around the proposed offshore wind farm in the shallow waters off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, you probably know that it has been going on for a long, long time. Unfortunately, the case has been filled with enough juicy political fodder over the last seven years to keep people from dwelling upon the fact that the regulatory review has already brought seven years of scrutiny by seventeen state and federal agencies.

However, an end may be in sight as a final decision from the U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) is imminent. That is why the timing of Vinick’s announcement strikes me as odd, and quite possibly a harbinger of things to come.