August 5, 2026 — Looking ahead to potential offshore wind energy development along the East Coast, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) says researchers are surveying Northeast and Mid-Atlantic shoreside businesses to “quantify the economic value of the coastal economy in advance of potential offshore wind development.
VIMS is asking seafood processors, dealers, wholesalers, distributors and other first-sale seafood businesses from Massachusetts to Virginia are to participate in the “Seafood First Sale Value Added Survey.”
The project is funded by a grant from the Science Center for Marine Fisheries (SCEMFIS), a member of the National Science Foundation’s Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers program. The science center brings together marine scientists and members of the commercial fishing and wind energy industries to collaborate on fisheries research.
The survey is designed to “address the existing information gaps in how offshore wind development may affect shoreside businesses and local fishing economies,” according to a statement from the center.
Despite the offshore wind industry’s economic turmoil – and determined political and policy opposition from the Trump administration – plans for turbine arrays off southern New England and the Mid-Atlantic have survived.
Revolution Wind developer Eversource Energy said it incurred a $164 million after-tax charge from construction cost increases as it battled the Trump administration’s stop-work orders on the project.
Notably Dominion Energy recently said its 2.6-gigawatt Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project is 81% built out, and completion is expected by the end of 2027.