Saving Seafood

MASSACHUSETTS: Keating criticizes federal response to damaged wind blade

July 29, 2024 — Congressman Bill Keating wants answers and better protocols from the federal government following the Vineyard Wind blade failure that sent countless pieces of foam and fiberglass debris — both tiny and large — to Nantucket shores.

“Numerous state and local officials have contacted my office to express their concerns regarding the lack of communication from the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) in the aftermath of this incident,” wrote Keating in a letter this week to the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.

BSEE has been regulating the oil and gas industry for more than a decade, and offshore wind is a new and developing industry in its portfolio. The agency cooperates with federal partner BOEM in the leasing of the expansive outer continental shelf for energy.

Per a government site, BOEM “studies the environment and leases resources,” while BSEE “provides regulatory oversight and enforcement” for environmental compliance, inspections and investigations.

“When debris is washing up on the beach, the first call a resident makes is to their town government, and [BSEE’s] delay in notifying local stakeholders is unfair to those impacted most by this incident,” Keating said in a press release Friday.

Read the full article at The New Bedford Light

CAPE WIND; Fishermen blast feds over turbines

July 29, 2024 — Fishermen are blasting the feds for suggesting they don ’t care about the ocean ecosystem and have no interest in the protection of the endangered North Atlantic right whales.

The claim came during a hearing yesterday in Boston federal appeals court as two fishing groups look to toss Vineyard Wind’s underlying permit, arguing regulators failed to analyze how the project would impact the environment and fishermen.

The alliance, as a trade association representing the fishing industry, does not have any interest in protecting right whales,” said attorney Thekla Hansen-Young, representing the Department of the Interior, the National Marine Fisheries Service, among other federal agencies, in the dispute.

Hansen-Young was referring to the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, one of the groups fighting the feds and Vineyard Wind. Seafreeze Shoreside Inc. is the other.

Annie Hawkins, the coalition’s executive director, shot back at Hansen-Young’s “repugnant” assertions after the hearing in which judges took no action.

“We take extreme offense to the government’s claim that our fishermen members have even less environmental interest in our oceans than recreational hobbyists because fishermen just want to ‘kill’ fish,” Hawkins said. “This statement erases generations of history, tradition, and knowledge.”

“Fishermen are faithful stewards of the ocean because their relationship with the sea forms the very fabric of coastal culture, supports their businesses, jobs, and communities,” she added. “The government’s repugnant position reveals a hostility to our iconic industry that is sadly common in its dealings with us.”

Hawkins’ alliance challenged the $4 billion Vineyard Wind project in January 2022 before the case waded through the courts, and U.S. District Judge Inditra Talwani dismissed the suit last October.

Responsible Offshore Development Alliance and Seafreeze Shoreside claimed the 62-turbine, 806-megawatt wind farm would harm fishermen and the North Atlantic right whale.

The National Marine Fisheries Service determined that Vineyard Wind was“not likely to jeopardize the continued existence” of right whales and other endangered species  an opinion they maintained in 2020 and 2021.

Read the full article at the Boston Herald

Feds pledge ‘comprehensive investigation’ of Vineyard Wind blade failure

July 29, 2024 — After initially signaling plans for an “independent assessment,” federal regulators told the News Service on Thursday that they are conducting a “comprehensive and independent investigation” into an incident that sent part of a Vineyard Wind turbine blade tumbling into the Atlantic Ocean and scattered debris across area beaches.

A spokesperson for the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said Thursday that the agency’s work will take a close look at the root cause of the July 13 incident at a turbine that was undergoing testing off the coast of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard.

“BSEE is conducting its own comprehensive and independent investigation into the causes and factors contributing to the incident and will evaluate all information provided to us,” the spokesperson said in a statement to the News Service. “BSEE’s policy is to release its findings to the public once our investigation is complete. Currently, there is no specific timeframe for the completion of the investigation.”

After the incident, BSEE ordered Vineyard Wind to stop generating power and to halt installation of new turbines, and issued a “preservation order” that a spokesperson previously said would “safeguard any evidence that may be relevant to determining the cause of the incident.”

Read the full article at WHDH

Court leans toward Interior in Vineyard Wind NEPA fight

July 29, 2024 — Federal judges appeared skeptical Thursday of a legal challenge by fishing industry groups against Vineyard Wind, the nation’s first large-scale offshore wind project.

In back-to-back oral arguments before the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Seafreeze Shoreside and the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance respectively urged a three-judge panel to reverse lower court rulings upholding approvals for the project.

A lower court “misread the law,” said Theodore Hadzi-Antich, a senior attorney for the Texas Public Policy Foundation representing Seafreeze Shoreside, referring to a 2023 ruling from the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts in favor of Vineyard Wind.

Read the full article at E&E News

BOEM Releases Final Environmental Impact Statement for Wind Energy Project Offshore Maryland

July 29, 2024 — The following was released by BOEM:

In support of the Biden-Harris administration’s goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy capacity by 2030, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) today announced the availability of its final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a proposed wind project offshore Maryland. BOEM has now completed environmental reviews for ten commercial-scale offshore wind projects since the start of the Biden-Harris administration. If approved, this project could generate between 1,100 and 2,200 megawatts of clean, renewable energy for the Delmarva Peninsula, and power up to 770,000 homes.

US Wind is seeking approval for its proposed Maryland offshore wind project, which includes three planned phases. Two of those phases, MarWin and Momentum Wind, have received offshore renewable energy certificates from the State of Maryland.

“Our environmental review carefully considered the best available science and information provided by Tribes, other government agencies, local communities, industry, ocean users, and environmental organizations,” said BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein. “This vital collaboration with all our government partners and stakeholders will continue through the subsequent phases of the project.”

BOEM held three public scoping meetings in June 2022 to solicit public input on the environmental review process, and hosted two in-person and two virtual public meetings in October 2023 to gather feedback on a draft of the EIS from Tribal Nations, local community members, commercial fishing interests, and other ocean users.

If approved, the project proposes to install up to 114 turbines, up to four offshore substation platforms, one meteorological tower, and up to four corridors for offshore export cables, which would make landfall in Delaware Seashore State Park. The lease area is approximately 8.7 nautical miles (nm) offshore Maryland and approximately 9 nm offshore Sussex County, Delaware, at its closest points to shore.

If approved, the development and construction phases of the project could support an estimated 2,679 jobs annually over seven years.

Biden-Harris Administration’s Progress to Catalyze the Offshore Wind Industry

Since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, the Department of the Interior has approved the nation’s first nine commercial scale offshore wind projects with a combined capacity of more than 13 gigawatts of clean energy — enough to power nearly 5 million homes. In that time, the Department has held four offshore wind lease auctions – including a record-breaking sale offshore New York and the first-ever sales offshore the Pacific Coast and in the Gulf of Mexico. The Department also recently announced a schedule to hold up to 12 additional lease sales through 2028. On August 14, BOEM will hold an offshore wind lease sale for the Central Atlantic, auctioning areas offshore Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia that could generate up to 6.3 gigawatts of clean energy and power up to 2.2 million homes.

The Department has also taken steps to grow a sustainable offshore wind industry by encouraging the use of project labor agreements, strengthening workforce training, bolstering the domestic supply chain, and undertaking enhanced engagement with Tribes, fisheries, underserved communities, and ocean users.

The Maryland Offshore Wind Project final EIS will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days. For more information, visit BOEM’s website.

VIRGINIA: Dominion bills will rise to fund wind farm

July 26, 2024 — Dominion Energy customers will see bills rise this fall to pay for the continuing costs of the electric company’s $9 billion project to erect a wind farm in the Atlantic Ocean 27 miles off the Virginia Beach Oceanfront.

The State Corporation Commission approved an 80% increase in the surcharge on bills that finances the offshore wind project.

The increase in the surcharge will boost a benchmark bill of $138 a month or 1,000 kilowatts of electricity by $3.89.

The increase takes effect on Sept. 1.

That increase will generate $485.9 million over the following 12 months.

Read the full article at the Richmond TimesDispatch

NOAA to provide $54 million for marine debris cleanups

July 25, 2024 — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it has up to $54 million in new funding to pay for marine debris cleanup. Two grant offerings are aimed at the usual large-scale collection of debris – and “installation, monitoring and maintenance of proven marine debris interception technologies,” according to the agency.

The funding is part of NOAA’s Climate-Ready Coasts Initiative. “Marine debris threatens the health, productivity and overall economic viability of coastal communities throughout the nation,” Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said in announcing the funds. “These new funding opportunities, made possible thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda, will strengthen our coastal infrastructure, keep debris from entering our waterways, and help protect our public health and marine ecosystems.”

Read the full article at WorkBoat

MASSACHUSETTS: BOEM Hears Mostly Opposition at a Meeting in Eastham

July 25, 2024 — Local officials on the Outer Cape have for a month been calling for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to hold a public information session here about one of eight proposed wind energy areas in the Gulf of Maine — the one sited about 20 miles off Cape Cod’s back shore — before its size and shape are approved.

BOEM, the agency of the Dept. of Interior that is charged with managing the development of offshore wind, finally did that on June 17, and some 200 people turned out at the Four Points by Sheraton for it.

BOEM announced the meeting only six days before it was held. The agency’s renewable energy program specialist Zachary Jylkka said that it was spurred by requests from local officials here and that, despite the planned public comment period being over, BOEM would take comments from the meeting into account.

The Independent spoke to eight people on their way into a packed conference room. Four said they had come to the session because they supported wind development, two said they were against it, and two said they had come to learn more. During the meeting, however, that straw poll did not appear to hold up. Of the 32 people who spoke, 25 opposed the wind energy area proposal or criticized BOEM’s management of it so far, and rounds of applause followed their criticisms. One person speaking in favor of the plan was booed.

Read the full article at The Provincetown Independent 

MASSACHUSETTS: As more turbine trash washes up on Nantucket, town considers suing

July 24, 2024 — As additional debris from a damaged offshore wind turbine washes ashore on Nantucket, the town is considering other methods of dealing with the aftermath, including litigation.

Last weekend, a damaged Vineyard Wind turbine sent floating debris and sharp fiberglass across the south shore of Nantucket, angering residents.

In response to the ongoing crisis on the island, the Nantucket Select Board will meet in executive session on Tuesday to discuss “potential litigation in connection with Vineyard Wind” regarding recovery costs associated with the blade failure, according to an online meeting notice.

Representatives from GE and Vineyard Wind will give an update at Wednesday’s regularly scheduled Select Board meeting. The engineering firm Aracadis is also expected to complete an environmental assessment soon, which they will present at the Wednesday meeting.

Read the full article at Boston.com

To decarbonize, New England is betting big on offshore wind. Can it deliver?

July 24, 2024 — Dozens of hard hats and yellow safety vests were neatly placed on folding chairs. A giant American flag hung from the rafters of a hangar-sized fabrication building. And cellophane-wrapped cookies with blue icing spelling out “Revolution Wind, powered by Ørsted and Eversource,” added the final celebratory touch.

After a rough year for the fledgling U.S. offshore wind industry, the crowd of union leaders, energy company representatives, state and federal officials, media and other guests at the Port of Providence on June 13 were marking the final assembly of the advanced foundation components for the Revolution Wind project, a 700-megawatt offshore wind farm currently under construction 12 miles southwest of Martha’s Vineyard that will deliver energy to Rhode Island and Connecticut.

Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee called the now- bustling port – packed with offshore wind turbine components and hosting a gleaming new crew service vessel built for Ørsted, the Danish offshore wind giant, docked nearby – “an example of what can happen all around the country.” The construction progress “marks a pivotal moment, not just for Rhode Island but our country’s offshore wind industry,” McKee added.

Other governors across New England are banking big on the mammoth turbines being installed off the coast to not only keep the lights on as the region moves toward cleaner electricity, but also to meet a surge in power demand from electric vehicles and a shift to electrified home heating. The region’s push into offshore wind comes amid longstanding apprehension by federal regulators and the nation’s electric reliability watchdog over New England’s dependence on natural gas power generation, worrisome when paired with its constrained pipeline capacity during extreme cold.

Whether the hundreds of turbines planned to spring up off the coast — and the major grid upgrades needed to get that power to where it’s needed — can reliably meet those expectations will come down in large part to timing, experts say. That includes not just how fast developers, who are facing supply chain problems and sometimes stiff local resistance and have complained about permitting delays, can get turbines built, but also when the expected demand increase from an electrified future materializes. Also in the mix: how quickly the system is able to inject the power produced offshore and whether it can handle the dips in output that can come with variable generation, said John Moura, director of reliability assessment at the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, which sets and enforces standards for the American power system.

Read the full article at Maine Morning Star