On Earth Day, CFACT took its campaign against Dominion’s offshore wind initiative to new heights – this time by carrying out a protest that featured an airplane flying a banner saying “Save Whales — Stop Dominion Energy” over the boardwalk of Virginia Beach.
The stunt was conducted near the intersection of 31st Street and Atlantic Boulevard, near the famous statue of the Greek God Neptune. Hundreds of onlookers walking up and down the beach took notice and shot pictures, as did local television station WAVY.
The purpose of CFACT’s aerial show was to draw attention to the potentially devastating impact Dominion Energy’s offshore wind project will likely inflict on whales, and in particular, the North Atlantic Right Whale, of which there are less than 350 in existence. The energy company is posed to place a staggering 176 massive wind turbines, over 800 feet tall, right smack in the migratory lanes of the large mammals. CFACT, naturally, opposes this initiative and has launched a lawsuit with a pair of its allies to stop it.
In addition to the aerial stunt, the Committee also treated Virginia Beach residents to other forms of viewing its poignant Earth Day message. One included a large billboard on the main artery leading into town on I-64, and a second involved a roving billboard truck that drove throughout the city throughout the day. Both sported a similar message as the aerial banner and were seen by tens of thousands.
CFACT has long employed the use of street theater to make its voice heard, especially on the issue of saving whales from the impacts of offshore wind. Other CFACT stunts included flying a plane with a banner over Atlantic City, staging a boat protest off Newport, RI, and organizing citizens to form a “whale tail” in Cape May, NJ, in 2023. All of them received generous media coverage.
This is by no means the last renewable energy developers will hear from CFACT. Expect to see more such street theater aimed at exposing their reckless disregard for the environment and property rights in the coming weeks and months ahead.