Environmental greenlight clears US offshore wind leasing in Central Atlantic for takeoff
Region one of four slated for auction this year as Biden Administration ramps offshore wind in face of Trump vitriol
The US government today (Thursday) released its final environmental assessment (EA) with a finding of no significant impact from offshore wind leasing in the Central Atlantic states from Delaware to North Carolina holding at least 4.3GW of capacity.
“We will continue to work closely with Tribes, our other government partners, ocean users, and the public to ensure that any development in the region is done in a way that avoids, reduces, or mitigates potential impacts to ocean users and the marine environment.”
The EA only evaluates risk of site assessment for any leases sold in the wind energy areas (WEAs). Any project that might be developed on the leases would go through a more stringent environmental impact statement (EIS) process.
BOEM has not disclosed when it will release its final sale notice for the region.
The planned auction will offer leasing in two WEAs covering some 278,000 acres with the potential to power some 2.2 million homes, said BOEM.
A-2 covers 101,767 acres and is located 30 miles (48 km) from Delaware Bay separating Delaware from New Jersey. Area C-1 encompasses 176,506 acres about 40 miles from the mouth of Chesapeake Bay off Virginia.
BOEM is in discussions with DoD and Nasa “to determine whether their activities could co-exist with wind energy development,” the regulator said, adding that the area could be included in a subsequent lease sale in the region.
Mid-Atlantic and Southeast states have raised targets in development with Maryland now mandating 8.5GW of capacity, while North Carolina is targeting 8GW.
Area C-1 may jump start floating wind development in the region as its waters are up to 148-metres deep.
US lease sales
Some 10GW of project capacity has been approved by the Biden administration, with one project, Orsted’s 132MW South Fork already operational, and three more under construction totaling 4.1GW
The Central Atlantic proposed sale has also been criticised by sector supporters who say it is insufficient to meet state goals in the Mid-Atlantic.
US industry group Oceantic Network said the 2024 proposed leasing “would be insufficient to meet Maryland and North Carolina’s offshore wind goals individually and collectively and would leave little room for states like Delaware to enter the offshore wind industry”.
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