Mass. Court Rejects Challenge To Cape Wind Permit

BOSTON — The state’s highest court has rejected claims by opponents of a wind farm in Nantucket Sound that the project sidestepped proper permitting.

The Supreme Judicial Court on Tuesday backed a 2009 decision by the state Energy Facilities Siting Board to grant the Cape Wind project permission to build power transmission lines through state waters. A different finding could have threatened the entire project, which would be the nation’s first offshore wind farm.

“We’re very pleased by the ruling; the court upheld all of our decisions and left no remaining issues or actions for the state government to take on the project,” said state Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Ian Bowles. “This project has been reviewed on the merits for nine years and I’m pleased that the court has upheld the state government’s decisions.”

Cape Wind applied to the state board after a local board, the Cape Cod Commission, rejected its request.

Project opponents had argued the state board exceeded its authority. They also argued the board should have considered the entire project’s impact on Massachusetts.

The court said that would have wrongly given the board power to reject the whole project.