A rally in support of wind power took place in Uniondale Thursday.

Standing next to mock wind turbines, dozens of supporters called on the LIPA board to approve an offshore wind power project on the East End.

The group says the idea has been tossed around for more than a decade. They collected 20,000 signatures from people who they say support a wind farm 30 miles off the coast of Montauk.

"We need to get off our addiction to fossil fuel. Offshore wind and solar are the ways to do that," said Gordian Raack, executive director of Renewable Energy Long Island.

Bonnie Brady, of the L.I. Commercial Fishing Association, opposed the idea at the LIPA board meeting. She cited studies that she says show wind turbines on the ocean floor can severely damage fish habitats.

The estimated cost of constructing the wind turbine is $1 ½ billion to $2 billion. It is not yet known what impact that would ultimately have on ratepayers.

LIPA board chairman Ralph Suozzi says a vote on the project is expected in December.

Deepwater Wind, the company proposing the wind farm, says its project will ultimately save ratepayers money because the other alternatives are subject to price fluctuations that no one can predict.