Arrive Magazine - March/April, 2009

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OBY STEPHEN JERMANOK

One stroll searching for seashells on Gay Head Beach as the sun splashes across the multicolored clay cli s and you’ll quickly understand why some American presidents want to spend their lone summer holiday on Martha’s Vineyard. The natural splendor extends out to sea, where sailors tack in the distance and fishermen throw out their lines to catch their share of fighting stripers (striped bass) and blues (bluefish). It only makes sense that Vineyard locals would want to preserve this beauty as they ardently support conservation, sustainable building, local farming and other eco-friendly initiatives.

Yet, of late, some people on the island have made news with their small but very vocal opposition to one of the pillars of the green movement: wind farms. The Cape Wind project would generate some 75 percent of all the energy used on Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket and the whole of Cape Cod. Opponents question whether tourism, boating, fishing and birding would be a ected by the 130 giant turbines.

“Martha’s Vineyard is perceived as a fairly liberal place, and a lot of people who support other green issues and are very passionate about the environment don’t support Cape Wind,” says Beth Daley, a science writer for The Boston Globe, who’s been covering the Cape Wind controversy since its inception in 2001. “Most locals use the water in a really fundamental way—either for their livelihood, like fishing, or for pleasure—and they feel that Nantucket Sound is sacred ground that shouldn’t be messed with by a private developer,” she says.