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Brigantine mayor urges Buena Vista to adopt resolution opposing offshore wind projects
Summary
A visiting mayor urged Buena Vista Township to pass a long, study-backed resolution opposing offshore wind projects, citing fisheries, visual impacts, decommissioning and potential tax and tourism losses; several residents echoed concerns and offered to help with outreach.
Mayor Vince Sah of Brigantine urged the Buena Vista Township Committee on June 24 to adopt a resolution opposing proposed offshore wind projects, saying the county and its shore towns should pursue legal action and other measures to protect fisheries, tourism and property values.
"Once these projects are built we're stuck with them," Mayor Sah said, arguing that federal and state analyses understate cumulative impacts and that decommissioning plans are inadequate. He told the committee the resolution he submitted is long and backed with studies and asked that the council place it on a future agenda for a vote so county officials can take coordinated action.
In his remarks Sah cited several concerns: he said Bureau of Ocean Energy Management statements indicate limited climate benefit for certain projects; he warned of large turbines visible from shore, asserted risks to whales and dolphins tied to surveying and construction, and raised the possibility of higher electric bills if infrastructure upgrade costs shift to ratepayers. He also argued that the projects could reduce tourism and property-tax revenues for shore towns.
Multiple residents who followed Sah at the podium said they supported his request and urged the committee to consider the resolution, to seek more local information and to coordinate with the county. Darthy Monera, speaking later during public comment, asked the committee to weigh local beach and watershed impacts and to protect nesting birds and other species.
Mayor Sah and other speakers referenced prior legal actions and studies; the record shows he cited a 2019 Rowan University public-opinion study, a 2018 state lawsuit over surveying, and industry documents described in public filings. Committee members acknowledged the comments and indicated they would review the material; no formal council vote on a local anti-wind resolution was taken at the June 24 meeting.
The committee did not take action on the petition at the meeting. Mayor Sah asked committee members to put his submitted resolution on a future agenda so the county executive and commissioners could be supported in further action.
What happens next: The committee has authority to add matters to a future agenda; interested residents can monitor upcoming agendas (the committee scheduled public hearings on other ordinances for July 22).
