Saving Seafood

BOEM’s compensation framework for fishermen ‘ensures consistency’ but not legally binding

January 22, 2025 — The lead government regulator on offshore wind issued a long-awaited federal framework this week to guide wind developers on how they should mitigate impacts and compensate the fishing industry for any loss incurred due to the turbine arrays.

It includes recommendations on claims processes, fisheries communication programs, and cable burial, and an appendix of complex formulas to calculate compensation — much of what developers have already been doing, albeit in varying ways.

The document is not legally binding, and has been in the works for several years, with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management issuing draft guidelines in 2022. BOEM states its new guidance “ensures consistency and promotes fair treatment of fishermen, regardless of their home or landing port.”

“This guidance focuses on transparency and early engagement with fishing communities, and effective strategies to mitigate potential disruptions,” said Brian Hooker, a BOEM lead biologist who led much of the effort. “Through this initiative, BOEM is working to decrease the impacts of offshore wind projects on commercial and recreational fisheries, and ensure fair treatment for all fishermen.”

Read the full article at The New Bedford Light

Biden Administration approves SouthCoast Wind construction plan

January 21, 2025 — On the last business day of the Biden administration, a federal agency announced its approval of the construction and operations plan for SouthCoast Wind, a big offshore wind project that Massachusetts is counting on.

“We are proud to announce BOEM’s final approval of the SouthCoast Wind project, the nation’s eleventh commercial-scale offshore wind energy project, which will power more than 840,000 homes,” U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Director Elizabeth Klein said in a Friday statement.

“We are proud to announce BOEM’s final approval of the SouthCoast Wind project, the nation’s eleventh commercial-scale offshore wind energy project, which will power more than 840,000 homes,” U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Director Elizabeth Klein said in a Friday statement.

Read the full article at the New Bedford Light

Feds lift Vineyard Wind suspension order; dozens of faulty blades to be removed

January 21, 2025 — Vineyard Wind’s suspension on installing the rest of its wind farm southwest of Nantucket was lifted by the federal government Friday.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement lifted the suspension after agreeing to an addendum of Vineyard Wind’s construction and operations plan Friday, originally submitted last month, “based on revisions Vineyard Wind made to its construction and operations plan,” a BSEE spokesperson said Sunday.

Read the full article at Mass Live

BOEM Finalizes Fisheries Mitigation Guidance

January 16, 2025 — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has finalized guidance aimed at mitigating the impacts of offshore wind energy projects on commercial and for-hire recreational fisheries. BOEM’s final guidance provides a national framework for addressing social and economic impacts on the fishing industry affected by offshore wind development.

This comprehensive final guidance, informed by extensive public input, establishes clear processes for the offshore wind industry to address potential disruptions to fisheries. It ensures consistency and promotes fair treatment of fishermen, regardless of their home or landing port.

BOEM initiated the guidance development process in late 2021 by issuing a Request for Information and opening up a 45-day public comment period. Using input provided during that comment period, BOEM then published draft guidance in June 2022 and opened another 60-day comment period. From late 2021 through August 2022, BOEM held seven workshops to engage stakeholders and gather input. Public participation was extensive, with nearly 200 oral and written comments submitted.

Read the full article at BOEM

BOEM Begins Environmental Review of Proposed Vineyard Mid-Atlantic Offshore Wind Energy Project

January 14, 2025 — Today, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced it will initiate an environmental review of Vineyard Mid-Atlantic’s proposed offshore wind energy project, located in the federal waters offshore New York and New Jersey.

The Vineyard Mid-Atlantic Offshore Wind project is in one of the six lease areas within the New York Bight Wind Energy Area, and as proposed would generate over 2,000 megawatts of electricity from up to 117 wind turbines, enough to power more than 700,000 homes. The proposal includes up to two potential export cable corridors that would make landfall at Rockaway Beach, Atlantic Beach, or Jones Beach, New York.

On January 15, BOEM will publish a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Construction and Operations Plan (COP) submitted by Vineyard Mid-Atlantic, LLC. This is the 14th COP review initiated under the Biden-Harris administration.

“Our environmental reviews are essential for helping us identify, evaluate, and address the possible impacts of our renewable energy efforts on other uses of the offshore environment and marine ecosystems,” said Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Director Elizabeth Klein. “Continued engagement with Tribes, local communities, ocean users, and others is critical for ensuring future decisions are well-informed.”

The 43,056-acre lease area is located in federal waters approximately, 20 miles offshore New York and 36 miles offshore New Jersey. See BOEM’s website for a map of the lease area.

Read the full article at BOEM

‘Much uncertainty.’ Cape, Mass. leaders see political shifts that may slow offshore wind

January 6, 2025 — The future of offshore wind is at a pivotal point this year, marked by a mix of determination and uncertainty.

On Dec. 20, the Biden-Harris administration granted final approval for SouthCoast Wind, the eleventh offshore wind project it has approved. With up to 141 turbines and the potential to generate 2.4 gigawatts of electricity, the SouthCoast Wind project, in a federal lease area south of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, is a key part of the region’s clean energy goals steadfastly promoted by Gov. Maura Healey, and many legislators and environmental advocates.

But the incoming Trump-Vance administration could dramatically alter the regulatory and financial landscape for offshore wind. Their less favorable stance toward the industry raises concerns about the pace of future projects and the viability of less mature proposals. This is especially true for the Gulf of Maine lease areas, where the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has provisionally awarded four of eight lease areas to Avangrid Renewables and Invenergy NE Offshore Wind, including due east of Cape Cod.

Local concerns and political shifts

Those who have voiced concerns about offshore development, meanwhile, say a cooler federal stance on offshore wind would be welcome. Many critics, particularly on Cape Cod, say the offshore wind industry is advancing too quickly without adequate consultation with those who will be most affected — local residents, fishermen, and coastal communities.

Susanne Conley, a Barnstable resident who’s a leader of the Save Greater Dowses Beach citizens group, advocates for a reevaluation of offshore wind policy. While she supports the transition to renewable energy, she believes the Biden-Harris offshore wind program should be halted, particularly in light of what she perceives as insufficient baseline environmental data “to understand the effect of these massive projects on the fisheries, on all ocean life, and on coastal communities.”

Read the full story at The Standard-Times

Biden admin calls on Supreme Court to reject Vineyard Wind case

December 17, 2024 — The Biden administration is urging the Supreme Court to turn away a petition calling for more analysis of how a major offshore wind project off Massachusetts could affect an endangered whale.

The Bay State group Nantucket Residents Against Turbines has claimed in its appeal to the high court that federal agencies failed to account for the cumulative effects of offshore wind development planned on the East Coast would affect the survival of the North Atlantic right whale when it approved Vineyard Wind 1.

In a brief to the court last week, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar said the Supreme Court should not consider the case because the group had not raised the issue before two lower courts in its lawsuit over the NOAA Fisheries and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management analysis of the project.

Read the full article at E&E News

Offshore wind companies pitch projects in the Gulf of Mexico, signaling interest in region

December 16, 2024 — After a period of stagnation for the offshore wind sector, a federal agency just announced that two new areas in the Gulf of Mexico have attracted interest from energy companies — a hopeful sign for a fledgling industry that Louisiana has sought to boost.

The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, or BOEM, which oversees offshore wind development, said Thursday that two areas off the coast of Southeast Texas have “competitive interest” for future business after two companies expressed interest in building wind farms there.

The 142,000 acres of note will likely be included in the next wind lease auction, scheduled for 2026, alongside other Gulf areas identified as apt for the technology.

While the companies’ proposed wind farms most likely would not supply energy to Louisiana, they suggest that the industry is eyeing the Gulf region for future projects.

Read the full article at NOLA

BOEM Announces Next Steps in Competitive Leasing Process for Offshore Wind Energy in Gulf of Mexico

December 12, 2024 — The following was released by BOEM:

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced today that it is issuing a Determination of Competitive Interest in two Wind Energy Areas (WEAs) in the Gulf of Mexico. The determination comes after an unsolicited request from Hecate Energy Gulf Wind LLC expressing interest in acquiring a commercial wind energy lease for WEA options C and D.

On July 29, 2024, BOEM published a Request for Competitive Interest (RFCI) in the Federal Register seeking feedback on Hecate’s unsolicited lease request. Invenergy GOM Offshore Wind LLC expressed interest in WEA options C and D. BOEM has deemed both Hecate and Invenergy to be legally, technically, and financially qualified to hold an OCS renewable energy lease in the Gulf of Mexico. As a result of this review, BOEM has determined that competitive interest exists in the RFCI areas.

“The Gulf of Mexico remains an attractive option for offshore wind energy development,” said Gulf of Mexico Regional Director Jim Kendall. “We are excited about the future of this emerging sector in the region.”

BOEM will move forward with the competitive lease process and proceed to hold the next offshore wind lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico in 2026. The next step in that process will be to continue to analyze the other comments received in response to the RFCI and evaluate which portions of WEA options C and D, and other potential WEA options, are best suited for sale. BOEM will release draft WEAs for public input early next year.

A notice announcing the determination of competitive interest will publish in the Federal Register on Dec. 13, 2024. For more information on the notice and offshore wind energy in the Gulf of Mexico, see the BOEM website: https://www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-activities/gulf-mexico-activities.

Vineyard Wind Withstands Another Legal Challenge

December 10, 2024 — Another attempt to halt Vineyard Wind through the courts fell short last week when a federal court dismissed an appeal by a fishermen’s organization and a Rhode Island seafood dealer.

A panel of judges with the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision on Dec. 5, saying the group’s claims that the federal government mishandled the approval process for the wind farm were unfounded.

The decision is one of several that Vineyard Wind, which aims to build 62 turbines to the south of the Island, has weathered in recent years, keeping the project’s approvals from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management intact.

Seafreeze Shoreside, a Rhode Island-based seafood dealer, the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association, the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance and other groups filed the appeal after their claims were rejected by the U.S. District Court in Boston in 2023.

Read the full story at the Vineyard Gazette