Saving Seafood

Trump Administration Targets Fourth Offshore Wind Project for Remand

October 22, 2026 — In what is clearly emerging as a new tactic to derail the offshore wind energy sector, the Department of Justice filed for the fourth time in just a matter of days, asking a District Court to remand the prior approval of the Construction and Operations Plan of a proposed offshore wind farm. The latest target is New England Wind and is drawing angry criticism from environmentalists and elected officials.

The Department of Justice filed a memorandum in support of the long-running case between an environmental group, Ack For Whales, which has been suing the Department of Commerce and Avangrid, the developer of a project known as New England Wind. In the now common tactic, DOJ asks the District Court for the District of Columbia to remand the approval of the Construction and Operations Plan back to the Department of the Interior so that it can reconsider the approval under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act.

It writes in the memorandum that the approval, which was announced on July 1, 2024, “did not properly consider or explain how the COP ‘provides for’ the subsection’s identified factors.” It is the fourth time DOJ has used a similar tactic to target the permits for wind farms. It took the same approach to challenge the largely completed Revolution Wind project, which should complete commissioning by the end of this year, and then to challenge a series of projects that had gained approvals under the Biden administration but have not commenced construction.

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive 

Trump admin reignites battle over salmon, dams in Columbia River

October 21, 2026 — The federal government sparred with conservationists before a Ninth Circuit panel on Tuesday in an effort to overturn an injunction in a long-running case concerning salmon recovery in the Columbia Basin in the Pacific Northwest.

“After a quarter century of judicial intervention, it’s time to return control of the Columbia River system to the federal agencies that Congress entrusted with that extremely complex task,” said Jacob Ecker, Justice Department attorney, referring to the operation of the 14 federal dams on the river.

The lawsuit over fish conditions began in 2001 and had reached an agreement until the Trump administration in June 2025 abruptly withdrew from the Biden-era 2023 Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement, which promised to spend $1 billion to protect endangered steelhead and salmon.

The agreement was the result of a deal struck with Oregon, Washington, the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Nez Perce Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon and the National Wildlife Federation, after they had proposed the Columbia Basin Restoration Initiative.

Under the agreement, the government committed to immediate measures to protect salmon, along with a decadelong plan to manage hydropower operations while meeting rising energy needs.

Read the full article at Courthouse News Service

Trump administration asks to reconsider Ocean City offshore wind permit

October 20, 2026 — Months after first threatening to do so, the Trump administration has officially filed a request to reconsider the construction permit it issued to an offshore wind project proposed off the coast of Ocean City, Maryland.

It’s just the latest episode in President Donald Trump’s battle against offshore turbines since returning to office last year. The Republican administration has halted coastal wind leasing, issued stop work orders to projects under construction and spent billions to buy back wind leases previously issued to developers.

When it comes to the Ocean City project, proposed by US Wind, the federal government is arguing that the project did not receive adequate consideration under a federal law known as the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act.

In their filing, Department of Justice officials cited possible adverse impacts of the project on: the North Atlantic right whale, “scenic and visual resources, some commercial fisheries, and scientific research.”

The administration is requesting to remand the permit “without vacatur,” meaning it would remain in place while the Department of the Interior reconsiders it.

Read the full article at WTOP

Trump Administration Asks Court to Let It Re-Evaluate Revolution Wind’s COP

October 14, 2026 — The Trump administration is renewing its challenges to Ørsted’s offshore wind farm, Revolution Wind, located off the coast of Rhode Island. The Department of Justice is asking a District Court in the District of Columbia to remand its prior approval of the construction and operations plan (“COP”) for further review on a project that has completed construction and is in the final stages of commissioning.

It marks the third time the Trump administration has challenged the 704 MW wind farm project, which is contracted to supply power to Connecticut and Rhode Island. In August 2025, it sought to stop construction while the project was approximately 80 percent complete, but it was rejected by the courts. In December 2025, the administration included Revolution Wind in its stop-work orders, this time contending the operations posed a risk to national security due to the potential for radar interference. The courts again rejected the stop-work order and let the project resume construction in January 2026.

The Department of Justice made its new filing in a case being pursued by an environmental group that has been challenging the project in the courts for years. Green Ocean has been suing the Department of the Interior and Revolution Wind, contending the project would cause harm to the environment.

The new filing made on October 9 asked the court to grant Green Ocean a summary judgment on its claims against the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, related to the approval of the project. Further, it says the Department of the Interior agrees that remand of its prior approval of the construction and operations plan (COP) for the Revolution Wind Project is warranted so that the agency can reevaluate its compliance with the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act.

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive

US Justice Department files defense of changes to definition of “harm” under ESA

October 12, 2026 — The U.S. Department of Justice has asked federal judges to quickly rule against four lawsuits challenging the federal government’s decision to rescind the definition of “harm” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), removing consideration of the habitat threatened animals need to survive in establishing protections.

“Regulatory overreach burdens American families and businesses, and these now-rescinded Endangered Species Act regulations are a prime example,” Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Energy and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) said in a release. “The Department of Justice will continue vigorously defending President Trump’s efforts to uphold the Act as written and protect economic growth.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

US House votes to give Justice Department more tools to go after trade violations

September 9, 2026 — The U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of giving the U.S. Department of Justice more tools and authority to crack down on international trade crimes, with lawmakers singling out Chinese exports.

“China has spent decades finding ways to undermine American workers and our economy. My bill will finally give the DOJ real tools to stop these blatant violations and ensure penalties are meaningfully enforced. Today’s bipartisan passage is a huge win for American workers and domestic manufacturing – let’s make it the law of the land ASAP,” U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) said in a release.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Trump cites national security to stop offshore wind development. Here’s what to know

July 17, 2026 — President Donald Trump’s administration has worked to stop offshore wind development on the grounds that it’s a national security risk since late last year.

It halted work on major projects, and it’s buying back leases, citing national security concerns. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum says a classified report from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth proves offshore wind is a national security threat.

This comes against the backdrop of the Republican president’s hatred of wind turbines and desire to boost fossil fuels for “energy dominance” in the global market. National lab estimates show that turbines installed along the U.S. coasts could provide more than enough power to cover the nation’s annual electricity consumption.

Wind turbines interfere with radar, but that isn’t a new problem. The Pentagon reviews wind farm construction plans and can deem areas off limits. There are upgrades to radar to mitigate turbine impacts.

Read the full article at the Associated Press

DOJ sides again with conservationists to block Pebble Mine

March 13, 2026 — A lengthy Department of Justice (DOJ) brief in defense of a veto on the Pebble Mine in Southwest Alaska has opponents of the mine elated and Northern Dynasty Minerals in Vancouver, Canada, promising further legal action.

The Feb. 17 filing in U.S. District Court in Anchorage stands firmly behind the Trump administration’s 2020 decision to deny mining permits for the copper, gold and molybdenum prospect in Southwest Alaska bordering on the world’s largest run of wild sockeye salmon.

The EPA’s decision exercised its authority under the Clean Water Act to prohibit and restrict discharges related to mining the Pebble deposit, based on scientific and legal analysis emphasizing protection of salmon habitat and ecological resources.

Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologists have forecast a return of 45.32 million red salmon to Bristol Bay in 2026, 21% above the long-term average of 37.4 million fish.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

ALASKA: Trump administration defends Biden-era rejection of Pebble mine by EPA

March 9, 2026 — The U.S. Department of Justice is defending a Biden-era veto of the Pebble copper and gold project, saying the Environmental Protection Agency properly exercised its authority to prevent adverse impacts to a “globally significant” fishery in Bristol Bay.

The Feb. 17 court filing by the Department of Justice continues the Trump administration’s opposition to the proposed mine, a departure from the president’s aggressive pro-development agenda that includes support of U.S. mineral production in Alaska.

The Pebble project sits on state land about 200 miles southwest of Anchorage, near the headwaters of Bristol Bay, home to the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery.

Mine developer Pebble Limited Partnership brought the case in 2024, suing EPA over its decision to block the mine under a little-used provision in the Clean Water Act. The agency had said the mine would cause “unacceptable, adverse” harm to the valuable Bristol Bay salmon fishery.

The Justice Department said in its filing that the Pebble mineral deposit exists under streams, wetlands and other waters that are critical for supporting salmon in the watershed, “a largely undisturbed, globally significant economic, ecological, and cultural resource.”

“(Pebble Limited Partnership’s) mine plan calls for the disposal of large quantities of fill into waters of the United States that would destroy or comparably damage large areas of salmon habitat that are fishery areas,” the filing said.

Ron Thiessen, president of Pebble’s parent company, Northern Dynasty Minerals, said in a statement that the filing is “surprisingly short-sighted” and legally flawed.

Read the full article at Alaska Journal of Commerce 

ALASKA: Trump administration defends Biden-era rejection of Pebble mine by EPA

February 26, 2026 — The U.S. Department of Justice is defending a Biden-era veto of the Pebble copper and gold project, saying the Environmental Protection Agency properly exercised its authority to prevent adverse impacts to a “globally significant” fishery in Bristol Bay.

The Feb. 17 court filing by the Department of Justice continues the Trump administration’s opposition to the proposed mine, a departure from the president’s aggressive pro-development agenda that includes support of U.S. mineral production in Alaska.

The Pebble project sits on state land about 200 miles southwest of Anchorage, near the headwaters of Bristol Bay, home to the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery.

Mine developer Pebble Limited Partnership brought the case in 2024, suing EPA over its decision to block the mine under a little-used provision in the Clean Water Act. The agency had said the mine would cause “unacceptable, adverse” harm to the valuable Bristol Bay salmon fishery.

Read the full article at Anchorage Daily News