The giant Cape Wind turbine farm project has overcome significant opposition, but now two Massachusetts tribes are attempting to block its construction, claiming cultural and religious issues.
The project had reached the approval stage after a lengthy nine-year process, but then in January the National Park Service declared the small island where the farm is planned a "traditional cultural property."
Bob Drogin writes, "The park service said the 440-foot-high towers would interfere with Wampanoag spiritual ceremonies, including greeting the sunrise with unobstructed views of the water.
The ruling also said excavations for the towers could disturb presumed Indian burial grounds that began to disappear under rising seas about 6,000 years ago. The shoal is now 30 feet beneath the waves."
Read the full story: Massachusetts tribes aim to take the wind out of a wind farm
Scotland to Build Floating Wind Farm Offshore
Officials in Scotland have announced plans to build a farm of floating wind turbines offshore.
BLM could allow oil leases near sacred New Mexico Indigenous sites
The Bureau of Land Management is considering removing protections from roughly 336,000 acres surrounding Chaco Culture National Historical Park.
Court Favors First Nations in Landmark Metro Vancouver Land Claim
The longest trial in Canadian history ended with the BC Supreme Court awarding rights to a 750-hectare parcel in Richmond to First Nations groups.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Seattle passes record-breaking transit services expansion
Proposition 1 will double the city’s transit tax to add 95,000 more bus trips and preserve 180,000 bus trips annually.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
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The Pocatello Development Authority