Legislators in a majority of states have recently embarked on novel experiments in alternative energy policy through renewable portfolio standards (RPSs). In many states, RPS policies have been used to spur public and private development of land-based wind power generation facilities. In fact, many states see wind power as an increasingly essential element in their energy portfolios. However, while a few states have investigated the potential of offshore wind projects, or wind farms, none have actually erected wind turbines in their waters. But in many places, the winds of change are blowing. No longer are the continental coasts seen as the only viable sites for offshore wind development. Increasingly, energy policy makers are turning their attention to the Great Lakes. On January 15, 2009, the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) released its final report of a yearlong study assessing the potential for offshore wind-power generation in Lakes Michigan and Superior. Despite much anticipation, the study’s results were inconclusive, at best. On one hand, the PSCW found that it is “technologically feasible” to generate electricity from wind turbines sited in the middle of Lake Michigan. However, on the other hand the report also conceded that there are a number of “significant technical, economic, environmental, and legal issues to resolve.” This Comment addresses the most significant legal concerns related to the development of offshore wind farms in Lakes Michigan and Superior, particularly whether and how the existing Wisconsin and federal regulatory schemes would accommodate offshore wind farm development. The Comment also discusses lessons that might be learned from two recent European policy initiatives: (1) the European Union’s 2009 Renewable Energy Directive, which established a comprehensive renewable energy regulatory system based on principles of extensive coordination and cooperation among various governmental entities, and (2) the United Kingdom’s Planning Act 2008, which considerably streamlined the permitting process for substantial national infrastructure projects such as large wind farms, but whose central permitting authority has been typecast as being undemocratic and authoritarian. The Comment identifies opportunities for Wisconsin state legislators to address offshore wind energy in the Great Lakes while simplifying the state’s current regulatory scheme, and discusses the potential for federal-state collaboration in efforts to develop the Great Lakes region’s renewable energy industries, generally, and offshore wind, specifically
