Touting Economic Benefits of Wind Power
“When we build in the utility sector,” Ryan Stanton, executive director of the Long Island Federation of Labor, said, “we’re creating union jobs and we’re investing money to make sure that we have the infrastructure to support our region.” Those workers “are spending money at the restaurants near the Port of Coeymans,” on the Hudson River, and “are at the gas station in East Hampton when they’re working on South Fork Wind.”
Eleven unions are working on Sunrise Wind, Ms. Drago said. “These are not foreign workers. These are our neighbors working on the jobs.” In fact, she said, “overseas companies are asking for local labor now to come work on their project.” Offshore wind is now a career, she said. “If you want a local career, if you want to be at sea, if you want to go travel, it’s got all those pieces to it.”