Viability of Offshore Wind Energy Across Wisconsin's Great Lakes

Abstract

This research project was designed to determine suitable sites for an offshore wind farm within Wisconsin’s jurisdiction of Lake Michigan and Superior. In the research process, we used GIS data to create a map of ideal wind speeds for electricity generation in both lakes, and this was overlaid with a map of excluded sites based on different criteria: human activities, historical sites, view protection, and environmentally sensitive areas. The results showed that there are vast stretches in Lake Michigan where an offshore wind farm would be suitable. We chose three sites determined as most suitable and examined individual factors of each site which included an economic estimate of capital costs. The cost and implementation of each offshore wind farm project is heavily dependent upon geographic location, and individual factors vary from project to project, and therefore exact costs are impossible to determine prior to planning the actual project.