Saving Seafood

BOEM advancement of New York offshore wind raising fishing industry concerns

August 18, 2021 — Two major offshore wind projects off the coast of the U.S. state of New York have taken steps forward over the past week, according to announcements made by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), and those developments have raised some significant concerns from the fishing industry in the U.S. Northeast.

On Monday 16 August, the agency issued its final environmental impact statement on South Fork Wind, a development that could generate 130 megawatts of power to the eastern end of Long Island.

However, according to letters from the Fisheries Survival Fund and the Port of New Bedford, Massachusetts, that’s not the case – at least in terms of the scallops fishery, one of the country’s most-lucrative fisheries.

Fishermen and port officials sent letters on Friday, 13 August, continuing to raise concerns about the largest planned development area, the so-called “Hudson South” area, which is located about 30 miles east of the central New Jersey coast and 60 miles south of western Long Island.

“The need for such precautionary measures is especially vital given that a sizeable body of research is shedding light on the extent of potential consequences to local fisheries from offshore wind-farm construction and operation,” wrote David Frulla, Andrew Minkiewicz, and Bret Spark – lawyers representing the FSF – in a letter.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Final Report on South Fork Wind Farm Cautions of Impacts to Fishing Industry

August 18, 2021 — The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has completed its environmental review of the proposed South Fork Wind Farm, and is expected to release its final decision on the project in October.

The agency said negative impacts to commercial and recreational fishing would be “major” and found there would be “minor to moderate” beneficial impacts in terms of jobs and investment in the local economy.

The Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) on the project, released on BOEM’s website Monday, Aug. 16, examines the potential environmental impacts of the proposal to build up to 15 wind turbines and an offshore substation in federal waters about 35 miles off the coast of Montauk. BOEM says in the FEIS that it prefers an alternative proposal to protect habitat by carefully siting just 11 turbines there.

The project, expected to be under construction by next year, would deliver approximately 130 megawatts of power to the South Fork, coming ashore at Beach Lane in Wainscott en route to a substation in East Hampton. It would be the first offshore wind farm to provide power to New York State.

The FEIS found the greatest potential for adverse impacts would be to the commercial and recreational fishing industry, “due to increased port congestion; changes to fishing access, primarily through reduced fishing opportunity when construction activities are occurring; damage to or loss of fishing gear; and impacts on the catch due to changes in target species abundance or availability during construction activities.”

“The “reef effect” of WTG foundations and associated scour protection would have minor beneficial impacts to for-hire recreational fisheries, depending on the extent to which the foundations enhance fishing opportunities,” they added. “Overall cumulative adverse impacts would be major.”

Read the full story at the East End Beacon

BOEM Completes Environmental Review of South Fork Wind Project

August 17, 2021 — The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has completed its environmental review of the proposed South Fork Wind project offshore New York and Rhode Island.

South Fork Wind – proposed by Orsted and Evercore – would be New York’s first offshore wind farm with 12 turbines and a transmission system that will generate enough power for 70,000 homes.

Expected to be operational by the end of 2023, the offshore wind farm will be located 35 miles east of Montauk Point. The underground transmission line will deliver power to the local grid in the Town of East Hampton, NY.

The project will deliver approximately 130 megawatts (MW) of power to the South Fork of Long Island, New York. If approved, it would be the second commercial-scale offshore wind project in the United States.

BOEM said Monday that the project, which could create up to 1,700 jobs, and the completion of the environmental review, were “a significant step towards achieving the Biden-Harris administration’s goal of accelerating responsible development of renewable energy on public lands and in offshore waters as a way of tackling the climate crisis and creating union jobs.”

Read the full story at Offshore Engineer

Study: Wind farm could have ‘major’ impacts on commercial fishing

August 17, 2021 — Development of the South Fork Wind Farm off the coast of Rhode Island would have an overall “major” adverse impact on commercial fishing, according to a newly released federal study.

Impacts to commercial fishing include navigational hazards from potential collisions, loss of fishing grounds and impacts from construction and operation, according to a final environmental impact statement released Monday by the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

The study found that impacts to other categories studied such as the potential impacts to air and water quality, marine mammals and bats, were negligible to minor, with many offset by the benefits of wind energy in combating climate change.

The overall “major adverse impact” on commercial fishing reflects the finding that some “commercial fisheries and fishing operations would experience substantial disruptions indefinitely even if remedial action is taken,” the study said.

But it’s not just the turbines that will impact fishing operations, BOEM found, saying that impacts of climate change and fishing itself present greater threats to the industry.

BOEM “expects that regulated fishing effort and climate change will continue to be the most impactful impact-producing factor[s] controlling the sustainability of commercial and for-hire recreational fisheries in the area,” the study said.

Read the full story at Newsday

MASSACHUSETTS: New Bedford fishermen, officials question New York offshore wind areas as auction nears

August 17, 2021 — As sections of ocean off the coast of New York near auction to offshore wind developers, local fishermen have called on the federal government to do a better job not only engaging with the fishing industry, but also heeding its concerns and implementing its recommendations.

At stake for fishermen, wind developers and the Biden administration is the New York Bight — an area of shallow waters between Long Island, New York, and the New Jersey coast. Within the bight, commercial fishermen fish for scallops, summer flounder and surf clams, among other species.

In June, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced a proposed sale of more than 600,000 acres of the bight for offshore wind development. Before the public comment period for the proposed sale closed on Aug. 13, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management held virtual meetings with fishermen, during which many shared their frustration and concern.

During a meeting on Aug. 6 with BOEM officials, city officials and fishermen from along the East Coast shared concerns about engagement, accountability, transparency and safety. The top BOEM official, Director Amanda Lefton, appeared virtually and spoke directly to local representatives. The meeting took a hybrid format with more than 100 people via Zoom and about 20 people at the city’s Fairfield Inn.

David Frulla, an attorney who works with industry group Fisheries Survival Fund, told the Standard-Times it was “notable” Lefton was present at the meeting and directly responding to attendees. He said in his recollection, there hasn’t been communication at this level between the BOEM director and fishermen — including during the Obama and Trump administrations.

In a letter sent April 28 to Lefton, Mayor Jon Mitchell wrote the wind energy areas, particularly the Central Bight and Hudson South, were established on “significant” scallop fishing grounds. He proposed the removal of a five-milestrip along the eastern boundary of Hudson South to minimize fishery impacts.

Blair Bailey, general counsel for the Port of New Bedford, told BOEM officials that it appears to the fishing industry that fishermen have a greater burden to prove something than other stakeholders.

He said when they requested a buffer, the “immediate” response from BOEM was a request for the city to provide scientific support. He said the city can and will provide it, but that BOEM’s response “doesn’t seem to apply” to others who provide input.

“When somebody doesn’t want to see a turbine from their house that’s on shore, that wind energy area disappears,” he said. “But when the fishermen say, ‘We need this area, therefore we need you to move things or change things,’ the response doesn’t appear, again from the outside, to be as quick and as accepted as the input from other people.”

Eric Hansen, a retired New Bedford scallop fishermen who owns and operates a few commercial vessels, told the Standard-Times that wind development in the bight is “very concerning.” He said every scallop fisherman on the East Coast uses the bight because they have allocations to catch a certain amount of scallops from an access area there.

For the 20th consecutive year, New Bedford was the nation’s top-earning fishing port. Scallops account for 84% of the port’s value of landings, according to the National Marine Fisheries Service.

The trip from New Bedford to the bight can take 12 to 20 hours and last one to two weeks, Hansen said. The amount of scallops caught in the bight annually can vary, but he said it makes up a “significant” portion of a scallop fisherman’s catch.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

BOEM reaches out to RODA, acknowledges need to improve communication

August 16, 2021 — Four months after fishing industry leaders wrote a letter to the head of the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management about the then-pending decision on the Vineyard Wind project, the federal agency finally responded and agreed to work on improving communications between the two sides.

In a release, the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) said it received the five-page letter from BOEM Director Amanda Lefton on Tuesday, 10 August. In that letter, Lefton acknowledged the industry’s “serious concerns” regarding the decision-making process on Vineyard Wind and whether fishing interests were being considered in the agency’s decisions on the permitting of other wind-turbine arrays along the U.S. East Coast.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

BOEM chief: We’ll work with fishermen on offshore wind plans

August 13, 2021 — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is working to expand and improve how it uses information from fishing communities in planning offshore wind energy development, BOEM Director Amanda Lefton says in a new letter to the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance.

The Aug. 10 letter came a few days after a public meeting with fishermen in New Bedford, Mass., the latest in the agency’s contentious relationship with the industry.

In the letter Lefton set a conciliatory tone with RODA, a coalition of fishing communities and advocates – while defending the agency’s efforts and promising to continue improvements.

“Since RODA’s founding, BOEM has been committed to collaborating with you and the fishing communities that your organization represents throughout the offshore wind leasing and development process, as well as through our environmental studies program,” wrote Lefton. “I look forward to continuing and enhancing that spirit of collaboration.”

The letter is a direct response to an April 6 document RODA submitted to the agency as part of public comment on the approval process for the 800-megawatt Vineyard Wind project off southern New England. Lefton cited that project as an example where the agency heard RODA’s recommendations, but ultimately came to a different conclusion.

“We recognize that your membership has serious concerns about the process and whether your input is being taken into account. We value the fishing communities’ input, give it serious consideration, and have incorporated it into many offshore wind decisions,” wrote Lefton.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Fishermen Protest Upcoming Bid for Wind Farms in New York Bight

August 11, 2021 — With the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management preparing to open more lease areas on the Continental Shelf to wind farm developers by the end of the month, the fourth and last meeting between fishermen and BOEM officials took place Aug. 6 in New Bedford, Mass. with fishermen calling for a halt to leasing until more science on potential environmental impacts could be completed.

The comment period on the proposed sale of six lease areas in the New York Bight ends Aug. 13; then the BOEM will take some time to prepare the auction details before holding an auction late this year.

The New York Bight is a triangle in the ocean between Montauk Point at the end of Long Island and Cape May at the southern tip of New Jersey. A total of eight leases will be for sale there. The larger portion of the lease area is located 35 miles off New Jersey and can’t be seen from shore, but it does pose hazards for fishing ships transiting the area and impacts the quahog, surf clam, squid and scallop fisheries.

BOEM representatives included Director Amanda Lefton, New York Bight Project Coordinator Luke Feinberg and marine biologist Brian Hooker.

Patrick Field, managing director of Consensus Building Institute, was the moderator and led off with what BOEM has heard from the fishing community so far: offshore wind energy is happening at an accelerated pace; commercial fishermen are concerned for their livelihood and the ecosystem; there’s a need for corridors for fishing within wind farms, as well as a semi-annual report on progress plus a way for commercial fishermen to voice concerns during the development of the wind farms; and finally, there needs to be accountability of BOEM and the developers.

Blair Bailey, an attorney for the Port of New Bedford, Mass., said, “Engagement is an important feature, but it can’t be based on the premise that there is no opposition. We have continually said that it is difficult for the scallop industry to fish within wind farms, and we feel we’ve been completely ignored. … Look around the world – there is not one place where you see scallop fishing in wind farms. It’s different fishing gear. Developers should be prepared for real conflicts.”

Annie Hawkins, executive director of the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, said the federal government has done nothing to address the safety of fishermen transiting the proposed wind farms or to protect key habitats of clams, scallops and squid. “Collaboration between fishermen and government agencies has been futile. … The process must be driven by fishermen.”

Read the full story at The Sand Paper

Offshore wind plans court disaster, fishermen warn

August 9, 2021 — The government’s plunge toward creating more offshore wind energy areas in the New York Bight is looking like a repeat of its mistakes in planning southern New England projects and needs to be braked, fishermen said in a meeting Aug. 6 in New Bedford, Mass.

“It’s going to be responsible for the destruction of a centuries-old industry that’s only been feeding people,” Bonnie Brady, executive director of the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association, told officials of the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

“If you really want to do that right thing, stop everything” until wind energy areas can be better assessed to accommodate power generation while maintaining fisheries, said Brady.

Speaking with fishermen via a Zoom online link, BOEM Director Amanda Lefton opened the meeting by saying the agency has learned from experience and is working to engage better with the fishing industry and head off conflicts.

“We have to improve our engagement with the fishing industry,” said Lefton. “We are doing our best to makes changes.”

Some changes are coming in how BOEM will review plans for the New York Bight – the arm of the Atlantic between Long Island and New Jersey, adjacent to the voracious New York regional energy market and already targeted for major offshore wind projects.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Fisheries Joint Meeting on the NY Bight PSN

August 5, 2021 — The following was released by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management:

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is hosting its fifth virtual meeting regarding the New York Bight Proposed Sale Notice in an effort to continue gathering important input from commercial and recreational fishing communities.

Please note the following:

We look forward to the discussion tomorrow.