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Nantucket reaches $10.5 million settlement with GE after turbine blade falls into water
The settlement creates a Community Claims Fund to compensate local businesses and residents for “economic harm."
Nantucket reached a $10.5 million settlement a year after a wind turbine blade broke off, sending debris and fiberglass shards into the oceans and nearby beaches, officials announced Friday.
The Town and County of Nantucket announced the settlement agreement, funds from which will go towards compensating the town and local businesses for losses from the incident.
“Offshore wind may bring benefits, but it also carries risks – to ocean health, to historic landscapes, and to the economies of coastal communities like Nantucket, known worldwide as an environmental and cultural treasure,” Brooke Mohr, Select Board member and former chair, said in a statement.
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The blade, from a Vineyard Wind 1 project turbine, broke off July 13, 2024, closing Nantucket’s south-facing beaches. The beaches reopened a few days later, but Vineyard Wind was ordered to temporarily cease operations.
Vineyard Wind, which is operated by GE Vernova, said at the time that it removed 17 cubic yards of debris, or more than six truckloads, and several larger pieces. Debris was found as far away as Falmouth and Chatham.
GE Vernova cited a “manufacturing deviation” as the cause of the damaged blade, specifically “insufficient bonding” that the quality assurance program should have identified.
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Vineyard Wind was given the go ahead to remove the damaged blade and continue its project, which is 15 miles south of Nantucket, in October. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration also determined that the incident wouldn’t have serious adverse effects on nearby whales.
“The incident scattered foam, fiberglass, and other debris along Nantucket’s shores during the height of the summer tourist season,” the town said in its recent release about the settlement.
Through the settlement, Nantucket will establish a Community Claims Fund to compensate local businesses and residents for “economic harm,” the town announced. The claims will be evaluated by an independent, third-party administrator.
The damages include clean-up costs and lost rental profits reasonably attributed to the turbine blade failure, according to the town’s frequently asked questions.
The town thanked GE Vernova “for its leadership in reaching this agreement.”
“We are pleased to have reached a final settlement agreement with the Town of Nantucket to provide compensation for any impacted local businesses,” a GE Vernova spokesperson said.
“Federal law limits localities’ influence in the design and approval of offshore wind projects,” town attorney Greg Werkheiser said in a statement, “but communities have rights when it comes to safe operations of the farms.”
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This story was updated to include a comment from GE Vernova.
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