Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato (D-Rockaway Beach) today announced, and encouraged her constituents to attend, an upcoming open house on the NYC Offshore Wind Master Plan, at the Peninsula Branch of the Queens Public Library on Monday, August 14th, from 6:00PM - 8:00PM. The open house is part of a series being hosted by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), focused on Coney Island, Rockaway Beach and Staten Island for their keenly-felt stake in the prospect of renewable energy in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.

According to a fact sheet distributed by NYSERDA, "the Master Plan will propose the best possible sites for offshore wind development off New York’s coast, establish guidelines for project developers, and provide recommendations for the purchase of offshore wind energy to ensure the lowest cost." As background to the program, the flyer explains that "New York’s Clean Energy Standard mandates that 50% of the State’s electricity come from renewable resources by 2030. To help the State get there, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo set an unprecedented commitment to responsibly develop 2.4 gigawatts of offshore wind – enough to power 1.25 million homes."

"Whatever your position on placement of wind farms, we need to be having this conversation," said Pheffer Amato. "The number-one contributor to climate change is energy production, and I know I speak for everyone on the Peninsula when I say that we know the physical impact of too many non-renewable energy sources. If they do station offshore farms, I'm sure we'll see some crop up on the horizon – so for many reasons, local residents should go, get more information and be part of the conversation about where we go from here!"