Quonset wind turbine training facility on hold, but other port improvements advancing
PLANS TO BUILD a training facility at Quonset Business Park for wind turbine maintenance technicians are on hold, with British company GEV Group saying it may not be able to hire the 123 workers required as part of previously awarded state tax credits. The jobs and training facility are intended to support a growing offshore wind industry, beyond the Block Island Wind Farm, pictured above. / COURTESY ORSTED U.S. OFFSHORE WIND
NORTH KINGSTOWN – Plans to open a training facility for wind turbine maintenance workers at Quonset Business Park are on hold, with the British company behind the proposal unsure it will meet the deadline for state tax credits awarded.
Updated on February 24, 2021 at 10:40 am
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One of the prospective developers of offshore wind farms miles from the New Jersey coast said it would train members of local labor unions to aid in the construction of its clean energy project.
The agreement between the wind developer Atlantic Shores and the six unions in New Jersey was described as the first of its kind in the United States, where a nascent offshore wind industry is hopeful for groundbreakings in the next few years of the Biden administration.
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Atlantic Shores, one of two developers with federal leases for offshore wind developments along the New Jersey coast, came to an agreement with local unions.
The center focuses on studying the environment and culture of the wetlands of the Bayou region. Most of the research that will be archived will be reports based on surveys, structured interviews, oral histories, field notes and observation.
John Doucet, dean of the College of Sciences and Technology and director of coastal initiatives, and Gary LaFleur, R.E. Miller Endowed Professor of Honors Studies and executive director of the Center for Bayou Studies will co-direct the project. Shana Walton, associate professor of English, modern language and cultural studies, will oversee day-to-day operations and student training as the project manager.
“The Digital Curation project will improve how levels of government from federal to local find key resources for environmental impact statements and other reports related to the Louisiana Gulf Coast,” said Doucet in a news release.