Photo: Clean Water Action’s Emma Weis [left] and Kerry Doyle visiting the South Fork Wind farm.
Last month, Clean Water Action staff grabbed sunscreen and Dramamine to witness the wonder that is offshore wind up close and personal, joining a boat tour of the South Fork Wind farm hosted by the National Wildlife Federation and the Environmental League of Massachusetts alongside fellow organizers, academics, and students.
Located about 35 miles east of Montauk Point, New York, South Fork Wind is made up of 12 turbines and an offshore substation. A partnership between Ørsted and Global Infrastructure Partners’ Skyborn Renewables, this offshore wind farm generates 132 MW of clean energy.
The first glimpse of the turbines came after about a 30-minute choppy boat ride out into the Atlantic, clearly far enough out to not ruin anyone’s beach view. These farms are so far offshore that people truly get seasick just to visit them – Dramamine could only do so much!
The demystification of offshore wind technology was a key goal of the May visit – and that it did. Passengers onboard were able to witness firsthand the farm in operation and its constant production of clean renewable energy. As the turbines emerged from the fog on the horizon and slowly grew, the energy on the boat shifted from excited buzz to silent awe. The collective efforts of the passengers had culminated in these massive, and shockingly quiet, structures providing clean, reliable energy to New England homes.
I started organizing for climate solutions in 2004. Now, over 20 years later, I’m a mother of two young kids, and I’m witnessing the results of our decades of work. First impression? They are huge but so quiet. It’s emotional because this is the clean energy future my children will inherit, and it’s finally happening.
- Kerry Doyle of Clean Water Action’s New England team.
How does it work? These massive turbines harness wind power in the open ocean as a renewable energy source, turning the rotor that operates an electricity generator as the wind turns the turbine’s blades.
At South Fork, this clean energy generated by wind first travels to the offshore substation and later reaches the electrical grid via submarine transmission cables deep beneath the sea and the shore, thus avoiding any harmful impact on marine and coastal habitats. Once on land, the buried cables continue to run along established utility infrastructure to the inland substation in East Hampton, New York, where it finally reaches the electrical grid.
What’s really exciting about this project is that it’s here, it’s built, and it’s already generating clean energy for the grid right now. This is the future of power and energy independence for the East Coast. We don’t have to import wind. We have wind right here.
- Kerry Doyle
Who’s getting the power and who’s benefiting? South Fork Wind provides clean energy to around 70,000 Long Island homes. Through the creation of countless supporting jobs, South Fork has benefited the Long Island community, the East Coast, and beyond.
The farm was built using entirely union labor, also contracting local businesses in the construction process. Long Island’s Haugland Energy Group, Elecnor Hawkeye, and Roman Stone are all local companies that contributed to the manufacturing and installation process. Other key infrastructure came from Texas, South Carolina, Rhode Island, and Connecticut, extending South Fork’s beneficial impact across the country.
And the quantified impact? In just the construction of infrastructure, almost 1,000 jobs were created across 5 states. 132 MW of clean energy is generated. 70,000 homes are powered. Millions of tons of CO2 emissions are prevented. And the town of East Hampton meets its 100 percent renewable energy goals. But that’s just South Fork.
The South Fork Wind farm is just one of the commercial scale offshore wind farms already operating off the East Coast. Larger New England wind farms are also now delivering power this spring. Revolution Wind, off the coast of Rhode Island, is up and running and will deliver power to 350,000 homes and businesses in Rhode Island and Connecticut while Vineyard Wind, a 62-turbine wind farm off of Martha’s Vineyard, will ultimately provide clean, reliable energy to 400,000 Massachusetts homes and businesses. Wind energy isn’t the future; it’s happening right now!
The East Coast is declaring our energy independence this spring! Offshore wind energy is locally generated, employs local neighbors, and is clean and reliable. And up close? It’s majestic.
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Looking for good news? There are 3 offshore wind farms already providing clean energy to the East Coast. Check it out! www.cleanwater.org/2026/07/22/offshore-wind-new-england-energy
