EcoRI News reports that the Narragansett Bay Commission has approved a $12 million construction contract to build three wind turbines at the Port of Providence.
The turbines should be operational by March of next year.
In other wind turbine news, WPRI reports that Deepwater Wind has submitted new plans for a 200 turbine wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
A selection of photos readers have recently shared in our Flickr Group:
Photo © boliyou
Photo © ecollins93
flickr photo submitted by closingatnever
According to a White House Press Release, The Obama Administration plans to hold an Ocean Policy Task Force public meeting in Providence, RI, on September 24, 2009.
The Task Force is charged with developing a recommendation for a national policy that ensures protection, maintenance, and restoration of oceans, our coasts and the Great Lakes. It will also recommend a framework for improved stewardship, and effective coastal and marine spatial planning. The public is encouraged to attend and an opportunity for public comment will be provided.
The Task Force has had prior meetings in Alaska and San Francisco and plans to have another in Hawaii. The meeting in Providence can be viewed from a live webcast during the 4-7pm scheduled meeting at the convention center.
According to an article in the New York Times,
The panel comprises representatives of environmental, transportation and other agencies.
The interim report also calls for greater integration of environment-related science in federal rule-making and the creation of a National Ocean Council to oversee the effort.
UPDATE From the Community Boating website
President Obama’s Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force will hold a press conference on the ceremonial dock at India Point Park from 1:30 to 2:15 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009 to talk about developing the National Ocean Policy and the importance of public participation.
Community Boating Center (CBC) will provide use the center’s building at India Point from noon to 1:30 for the task force to have lunch and use of the CBC facility in the event of inclement weather for the press conference.
Later that afternoon, beginning at 4 p.m. at the Convention Center, the task force will hold one of 6 national public meetings to hear comments from the public on a national ocean policy. Providence was chosen for the only East Coast public meeting of the task force.
Speakers will include the chair of the task force, Nancy Sutley, chair of the Whitehouse Council on Environmental Quality, NOAA Administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco, and several other federal officials on the task force, including officials from the U.S. Coast Guard, Dept. of Interior, Dept. of Health and Human Services and other agencies. Approx. 20 people from the task force and their staff are expected at the press conference.
John O’Flaherty, Executive Director of CBC commented, “We are thrilled to play a humble role in supporting this impressive team in their historic and invaluable mission to protect our oceans.”
Still catching up with submissions to our Flickr Group, this time from closingatnever.
Cold Water District, Bath St, Smith Hill area | Photo © closingatnever from Flickr
The bay near Save The Bay | Photo © closingatnever from Flickr
Escalator at the Westin | Photo © closingatnever from Flickr
If you’d like your photos featured here, join our Flickr Group and submit them.
Could the Providence-Newport Ferry rise from the dead and return to service this summer? RIPTA is hoping to make it work. As the Journal reports, RIPTA has issued two RFPs. One asks ferry companies to bid for a no-subsidy service. Likely this would be fewer trips and a shorter season than we are used to. The other RFP asks ferry companies to quote what subsidy they would need to provide the previous level of service.
RIPTA announced last year that the ferry would not return this summer due to the end of a half million dollar federal subsidy. At the time I said it was rather short sited of RIPTA not to plan for the end of a subsidy that clearly had an end date. I also questioned how there could be absolutely no way to find a half million dollars to make up for the lost subsidy (of course this was before the economy ‘sploded).
I don’t know where RIPTA is hoping to find the funds for the subsidized RFP, but I hope they can make it work. The ferry was a vital piece of our tourist economy and it is madness for the Ocean State to not have a public ferry service utilizing Narragansett Bay.
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City Meetings
