Ohio Supreme Court ruling could mean the end of Lake Erie's Icebreaker wind farm project

"The Ohio Supreme Court is expected to hand down a decision soon on whether the proposed Icebreaker wind farm in Lake Erie can go forward.

The project is being challenged by two lakeshore residents who believe the giant blades pose too great a risk to migrating birds.

Back in 2011 WKSU joined a crew of engineers heading out onto Lake Erie with a dream. We docked at the century old water intake crib five miles off shore to check the array of wind gauges. Blowing across fifty miles of lake, the unobstructed breeze from the north was what Icebreaker's planners called 'clean wind', an untapped energy resource. LEEDCo, the Lake Erie Energy Development Corp., had hoped the six turbine pilot project would be the first off-shore wind farm in American waters.

Now, bogged down by lawsuits, slowed by regulators, and starved for state support Icebreaker is nearly sunk. LEEDCo last year lost its last full-time employee, prompting board member and Port of Cleveland CEO Will Friedman to step up to keep the project afloat.

“It's still alive," he said, "still working on the same objective, which is to bring Icebreaker to fruition.” But Friedman says the headwinds are formidable. “There’s just not much appetite for renewable projects in Ohio.”