December 11, 2025 — A federal judge has pushed back on the Trump Administration’s pause on wind energy projects carried out by federal agencies, raising new questions for offshore plans near Cape Cod — a ruling that some welcome, but disappointed others.
The finding, released from the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts on Dec. 8, does not cancel President Trump’s original executive memorandum calling for a pause on wind approvals, but it does call for ending federal agencies’ enforcement of his directives.
The Sierra Club Massachusetts is among those applauding the court’s finding. In May, the organization joined nine other environmental groups in a filing arguing that the administration’s “wind directive” was arbitrary and not based in science, lacked a clear purpose and timeline, and jeopardized climate goals and public health.