The New York Times published story today on the National Parks Service’s response to an inquiry about Nantucket Sound, finding that is is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. The site has not yet been listed, and if it were it could further hinder the beleaguered renewable energy development, but it would not be an insurmountable impediment.

Firstly, it may be instructive to compare “good examples of listed properties in the National Register of Historic Places.” The registry runs the gamut from whimsical structures to architectural masterpieces, and everything in between.

Second, note that: Of the more than one million properties on the National Register, 80,000 are listed individually. The remainder are contributing members within historic districts. (Wikipedia). The Times article also notes that the Sound would be by far the largest body of water ever included in the registry.

So what are the implications of listing Nantucket Sound?

…allow the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation an opportunity to comment on all projects affecting historic properties either listed in or determined eligible for listing in the National Register.
…
Qualification for Federal grants for historic preservation, when funds are available. Owners of private property listed in the National Register are free to maintain, manage, or dispose of their property as they choose provided that no Federal monies are involved.

In other words, “Properties are not protected in any strict sense by the Federal listing. States and local zoning bodies may or may not choose to protect listed Historic Places” (Colorado, as cited in Wikipedia). However, in Massachusetts federally listed properties are automatically added to the state’s roll, even though the Sound had already been rejected for listing in the state registry. Successful listing may not stop the project in and of itself, but the added layers of review could lead it to stall.

For more information, read the eight page decision.

Update: See also this ENS article which includes general background on the project, including upcoming steps in the project. It also reports that 86% of Bay Staters support the project.