Offshore Wind Killing Whales at an Alarming Pace off East Coast

­Renewable energy sometimes has unintended environmental fallout — not as great as fossil fuels, but it’ll need to be addressed.

The latest — an epidemic of whale deaths attributed to offshore wind on the East Coast.

We’ve already seen windmills’ tendency to kill heaps of birds, but put them out to sea, and they become dangerous for some of the world’s largest marine mammals.

In less than two months, 9 whales — including two sperm whales and seven humpback whales — have been found dead across the East Coast…not coincidentally, where there’s offshore wind.

These offshore turbines pose a particular danger to whales for several reasons.

"Marine mammals (whales, porpoise, seals) are sensitive to underwater sound and are extremely vulnerable to harm during offshore wind construction. Damage to their hearing kills their ability to navigate and communicate permanently," noted Protect Our Coast NJ.

These marine mammals can permanently lose their hearing, but it’s not just that. They’ve also been struck and killed by the boats sent out to install the turbines, and in additions, these ships can interrupt the whales’ sonar, causing them to beach themselves.

Hence, the nearly unprecedented number of whale deaths over the past couple months.

And this is just the beginning. In order for the U.S. to hit its renewable energy goals, the nation will need to install a monumental number of offshore wind farms. 

This could have serious consequences.

"Industrial wind projects ‘could have population-level effects on an already endangered and stressed species,” noted NOAA scientist, Sean Hayes.

Politicians are calling for an immediate halt to offshore wind until its full danger can be ascertained, but the same politicos supporting the wind farms find themselves clashing with environmental groups they’d otherwise walk in lockstep with.