LOUISIANA (Illuminator Louisiana) – Louisiana is just getting started on developing offshore wind energy, but any revenue generated by such projects for the state will be directed to coastal projects after voters approved a constitutional amendment Tuesday establishing commitment.

Final but unofficial results from Louisiana’s secretary of state showed 73 percent of voters supported the ballot measure that would direct dollars to undertakings such as barrier island restoration and wetlands reconstruction.

There were no organized campaign messages for or against the constitutional amendment, requiring voters to do their own homework. The most recent survey of Louisiana residents regarding their interest in alternative energy sources was conducted in June by LSU.

Of more than 1,000 people surveyed by phone and online, 59 percent favored wind energy development in Louisiana. The rate was 72% in favor of solar energy development and 79% in favor of increased oil and gas drilling in coastal areas.

When asked whether Louisiana should prioritize the growth of alternative energy over continued fossil fuel exploration, respondents were almost evenly split.

Wind farm sites on Louisiana’s outer continental shelf are in their infancy, but developers say they are a viable alternative, along with solar power, to help meet energy goals. clean energy. The city of New Orleans, for example, has set a goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Some investor-owned utility shareholders have also pushed companies to move toward carbon sources. greener energy.

In Louisiana, a state with a long fossil fuel heritage, the appetite for developing an offshore wind energy industry is surprisingly healthy. This is largely because the same infrastructure and expertise responsible for oil and gas wells in the Gulf of Mexico can also be applied to the massive turbines needed to convert coastal winds into electricity.

The Block Island Wind Farm, the first commercial wind energy development in the United States, used Louisiana engineers and manufacturers to build its five wind turbines off the coast of Rhode Island.

Louisiana lawmakers and those companies in their districts have been most active in getting legislation approved to encourage offshore wind investments. Two years ago, they received unanimous support to expand the footprint of wind farms up to five times the size needed for coastal oil and gas drilling. Lawmakers also rejected a proposal to exclude offshore wind development from the state’s lucrative industrial tax exemption program.

The biggest barrier to the growth of offshore wind in Louisiana is the lack of transmission infrastructure. Without lines to connect wind turbines to an onshore electricity distribution network, coastal projects are literally dead in the water.

The issue is whether wind farm developers or utilities that want to expand their alternative energy portfolios will provide the resources needed to connect power to end users.

Arguments for the wind revenue amendment have positioned it as a complementary part of the state’s strategy to combat coastal land loss — a factor blamed, in part, on uncontrolled oil and gas exploration.

Illuminator Louisiana is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains its editorial independence. Contact editor Greg LaRose with questions: [email protected]. Follow Louisiana Illuminator on Facebook And X.