Saving Seafood

Green groups sue over expanded Gulf drilling

July 19, 2018 — Green groups are suing the Trump administration over its decision to expand drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

Earthjustice filed the lawsuit on Monday on behalf of three groups, the Gulf Restoration Network, the Sierra Club and the Center for Biological Diversity, against the Interior Department and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

The suit targets a decision from the administration to open up 78 million acres of the Gulf to potential drilling.

The groups say regulators have failed to do the necessary environmental checks and are in violation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).

“The Gulf is one of the most productive marine regions in the United States, supporting many species of turtles, dolphins and whales as well as accounting for one third of the nation’s seafood catch every year,” said Cynthia Sarthou, executive director of the Gulf Restoration Network, in a statement.

Read the full story at The Hill

Fishermen Vent About Fears on Offshore Wind

July 19, 2018 — Three staffers from the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) faced a tidal wave of resentment when they met with commercial fishermen on July 11 at the Montauk Playhouse.

The federal employees were there to obtain comments about the federal government’s plan to lease sections of the continental shelf south of Long Island and east of New Jersey for wind farm development.

The highly structured event was supposed to have included a slide presentation and question-and-answer session that was billed “New York Bight Call and Area Identification” in the four-hour event schedule. “Call” areas are those identified by BOEM as suitable for leasing.

Instead a group of about 15 fishermen spent the time peppering BOEM fisheries biologist Brian Hooker with questions, complaints and a few rants, including that of fisherman Chuck Morici, who told the officials they made him sick.

Read the full story at the Sag Harbor Express

Groups sue over offshore drilling expansion in Gulf, will also defend Atlantic

July 18, 2018 — Environmental groups on Tuesday sued the Trump administration over its expansion of offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, and said they are prepared to do the same if lease sales are announced for the Atlantic coast.

“This lawsuit is specific to lease sales happening in the Gulf, but we are prepared to defend the Atlantic from offshore drilling as well,” said Maggie Caldwell of New York City based Earthjustice.

The group filed the suit on behalf of the Gulf Restoration Network, the Sierra Club, and the Center for Biological Diversity.

The suit alleges the administration moved to expand drilling to 78 million more acres of the Gulf of Mexico, without fully analyzing the risks to people, wildlife, and the environment.

The lease sales targeted in the suit are the largest ever offered for oil and gas development in U.S. history, the organizations said.

It was in response to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) announcement last week of its next lease sale on August 15.

Read the full story at the Press of Atlantic City

Fishermen: Wind Farms Bad For Business

July 18, 2018 — Federal officials in charge of leasing ocean bottom land to offshore wind farm companies got an earful at a meeting with commercial fishermen Wednesday — and much of it was R-rated.

There isn’t merely significant opposition to offshore wind farms; there is 100-percent agreement among the fishermen that the wind turbines will eventually put them out of business.

The anger is palpable, and representatives from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management took the brunt of it, enduring a tirade of complaints. “This is how we talk on the docks,” one salty speaker exclaimed.

At issue is a federal directive — fueled in part, some say, by New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo — to award leases for two more tracts of ocean bottomland that will eventually be home for wind farms. So far, 13 leases have been awarded to developers.

Brian Hooker, a fisheries biologist, David Nguyen, a project coordinator, and Isis Johnson, an environmental protection specialist, tried for close to four hours to get through a prepared program. They are charged with choosing two locations from within four giant swatches of ocean bottom off the coasts of Long Island and New Jersey. The fishing industry reps don’t think there should be any offshore turbines, period.

Read the full story at The Independent

Trump’s big reorg plan gets a second and third look

July 17, 2018 — Senators this week will scrutinize the Trump administration’s extremely ambitious government reorganization plan that would amplify the Interior Department’s clout.

Some lawmakers are already applauding the general idea, though key reorganization details remain lacking, including potential costs, savings, job losses, relocations, office closures and timelines.

The Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA Fisheries would merge within Interior under the plan. This, too, is an old idea. President Obama proposed something similar in 2012, using familiar-sounding language

“The Interior Department is in charge of salmon in fresh water, but the Commerce Department handles them in salt water,” Obama said at the time. “No business or nonprofit leader would allow this kind of duplication or unnecessary complexity in their operations. … It has to change.”

It didn’t change.

The plan would also merge the Energy Department’s applied energy offices on renewables, nuclear and fossil energy into one “Office of Energy Innovation.” The White House also wants to establish a new “Office of Energy Resources and Economic Strategy.”

House members did not mention or raise questions about the energy- and environment-related moves during last month’s Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on reorganization.

Those moves, though, will face the heat at Thursday’s hearing of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, whose members have already blasted a proposal to privatize power marketing administrations.

Read the full story at E&E News

New online source shows East Coast offshore wind projects

July 13, 2018 — Mariners have a new source for information about offshore wind energy projects proposed off the East Coast.

Offshore Wind in the Northeast Region is a new webpage compiled by the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils that shows all planned and potential offshore wind energy lease areas to date from southern New England to Cape Hatteras, N.C.

The page is intended as a one-stop information source, for mariners and other stakeholders with interests in how the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management plans leasing for offshore wind energy development on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

The page links to BOEM planning documents, government planning documents and studies, and wind developers’ information. It also maintains an updated list of public meetings and information sessions, like a series of meetings held this week in New York and New Jersey that were aimed at involving the recreational fishing sector.

Key links include the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portals, public websites that compile information about economic activity and environmental conditions off the East Coast. The websites’ mapping overlay capabilities allow shipping traffic, fishing activity and other uses to be compared to proposed wind farm sites – data that is shaping much of the debate over whether wind energy can be compatible with long-established commerce on the ocean.

Read the full story at WorkBoat

MAFMC and NEFMC Launch Northeast Offshore Wind Webpage

July 11, 2018 — The following was released by the Mid Atlantic Fishery Management Council & New England Fishery Management Council:

On July 11, 2018, the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils launched a new webpage that’s designed to serve as a repository for information relevant to offshore wind development activities in the Northeast Region. The Councils worked closely with NOAA Fisheries on this collaborative effort. The easy-to-navigate webpage provides one-stop-shopping for fishermen and other stakeholders who are searching for essential resources associated with offshore wind energy production. The page provides direct links to government agencies, offshore wind developers, fishery liaisons, Council-developed comments, and more.

Take a look at Offshore Wind in the Northeast

Fishermen in the region are highly interested in better understanding the impacts of offshore wind development on both commercial and recreational fisheries. The New England and Mid-Atlantic Councils want to ensure that any potential impacts on Council-managed species and the marine environment are fully considered. In light of these factors, the Councils developed the offshore wind webpage as a tool to: (1) help facilitate the exchange of information; and (2) provide quick access to available resources.

Here’s the Webpage Address: http://www.mafmc.org/northeast-offshore-wind

Webpage Information Includes Links to:

  • The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), along with BOEM’s Fishing Industry Communication and Engagement page, BOEM’s State Activities page, and BOEM’s email updates registry;
  • Northeast offshore wind developers;
  • Mid-Atlantic and New England Council policies and comment letters on offshore wind issues;
  • Project-specific information on fisheries and the marine environment relative to wind activities and other ocean uses;
  • Mappers for Essential Fish Habitat and Endangered and Protected Resources, Regional Ocean Data Portals; and more.

Rhode Island squid fishermen fear wind power

July 2, 2018 — Rhode Island fishermen say a patch of the Atlantic Ocean south of Martha’s Vineyard is among the best places around to catch squid.

They are also the same waters in which a developer selected by Massachusetts plans to install up to 100 giant wind turbines that would supply clean, renewable energy to the state.

Now, Rhode Island coastal regulators and the state’s fishing community are raising concerns that the offshore wind farm that Vineyard Wind wants to build in 250 square miles of federally-owned ocean may affect access to the squid grounds that are critical to the Point Judith fleet.

“They cut out scallop fisheries valued by Massachusetts,” said Grover Fugate, executive director of the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council. “But the grounds left are valued by Rhode Island fishermen, particularly for squid.”

Erich Stephens, chief development officer for Vineyard Wind, said the company has worked hard to accommodate the needs of Rhode Island fishermen — such as working to restrict the prospective schedule for laying a transmission cable to avoid the height of the squid fishing season in the summer — but he also acknowledged the dissatisfaction in some quarters with the proposed 800-megawatt wind farm.

“At the end of the day, there are a lot of different interests,” Stephens said. “It’s not possible to come up with a single design that will keep everyone happy.”

Read the full story at the Providence Journal

What’s next in the offshore drilling debate? Hint: It involves fish.

June 22, 2018 — Environmental groups are keeping a close eye on the National Marine Fisheries Service to see whether the federal agency will grant permits that would likely pave the way for seismic testing off the Atlantic coast, including North Carolina.

“Seismic airgun blasting is the first step toward oil and gas drilling and could lead to catastrophic consequences. … (If approved), this is an investment in offshore drilling,” said Diane Hoskins, Oceana’s campaign director for offshore drilling.

The steps to seismic testing in the South Atlantic include approval of the incidental harassment authorizations by the National Marine Fisheries Service, which could then be followed by approval of the permits from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM).

According to NOAA’s website, the public comment period for proposed seismic permits in the Atlantic closed last July. The comment review and final determination process typically takes, according to the site, one to three months.

“We are working through about 17,000 public comments as expeditiously as possible, but will take the time necessary to ensure that they are all appropriately addressed and that our final decision is based on the best available science,” Kate Brogan, a National Marine Fisheries Service spokeswoman, wrote in an email.

Read the full story at Star News

ENVIRONMENTALISTS SUE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IN TAMPA OVER OFFSHORE DRILLING

June 22, 2018 — Earthjustice, on behalf of three conservation groups, sued the Trump administration Thursday (June 21) alleging that it failed to complete a legally required consultation about offshore drilling’s harms to threatened and endangered species in the Gulf of Mexico.

The National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are required under the Endangered Species Act to complete a consultation with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management on its oversight of oil and gas operations that could impact threatened and endangered species. The last time the agencies completed a consultation, called a biological opinion, was in 2007, three years before the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster which led to the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history, according to Earthjustice.

With the lawsuit, filed in federal district court in Tampa, the Gulf Restoration Network, Sierra Club, and Center for Biological Diversity are challenging the agencies for unreasonably delaying completion of a new consultation and seeking a court order to compel them to complete it within three months. A new biological opinion likely would result in additional safeguards to prevent further harm to sea turtles, whales, and other threatened and endangered species from oil and gas operations in the Gulf.

Read the full story at the Tampa Bay Reporter