OCEAN CITY, NJ – Onshore testing for New Jersey’s inaugural offshore wind energy project moved forward without delay on Tuesday, even as police arrested six individuals for interfering with the operations.
The demonstrators were arrested in Ocean City, a center for anti-wind farm sentiment. The city’s law enforcement acted after multiple warnings were unheeded by protesters who obstructed a roadway.
A representative from Protect Our Coast NJ, Robin Shaffer, confirmed that three among the arrested chose to lie down in the street as part of their protest. Each demonstrator was slapped with charges of obstructing public pathways and failing to disperse, as conveyed by Doug Bergen, the city’s spokesman.
In a public statement, Mayor Jay Gillian, also against the wind farm, shared his sentiments. “It’s unfortunate arrests had to be made, but that’s the nature of democratic discourse,” he said.
Orsted, a Denmark-based firm, initiated the land-based tests to explore the feasibility of a cable route from offshore turbines to an old coal-fired plant in Upper Township. The procedures for the day involved creating apertures in road surfaces and assessing soil and groundwater conditions for their project, dubbed Ocean Wind I.
Orsted’s spokesman, Tom Suthard, emphasized the company’s focus on safety. “Today’s Ocean City tests for Ocean Wind I went on as scheduled. We uphold the community’s right to protest peacefully but prioritize the well-being of our workers and locals,” he said.