Wind

US tribes in legal bid to halt Oregon floating wind round 'driven by the White House'

Indigenous groups and fisheries claim Biden administration and 'urban elites' steamrolling coastal communities with 3.2GW auction

President Joe Biden's administration is said to be driving offshore wind development.
President Joe Biden's administration is said to be driving offshore wind development.Photo: Flickr/U.S. Secretary of Defense
US Offshore Wind Editor, Recharge

The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)’s looming leasing round off the Pacific Northwest state of Oregon is in troubled waters as local Tribes filed a lawsuit in federal court to stop it until a more comprehensive environmental review can be done.

BOEM has scheduled an auction on 15 October for leases in two wind energy areas (WEAs) off Coos Bay and Banning covering some 195,012 acres (789 km2) and holding around 3.2GW of capacity.

The areas are in deep waters exceeding 1,000-metres, requiring floating platforms.

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians (CTCLUSI) filed its suit against BOEM in US District Court for the District of Oregon in Eugene claiming that the environmental assessment (EA) of the WEAs was insufficient and violated federal law.

“The Tribe has consistently urged that BOEM delay moving forward with wind energy development until a better understanding is made of the impacts to fish, wildlife, the marine environment, and cultural resources important to the Tribe,” said Tribal Council chair Brad Kneaper.

The EA “narrowly focused on the impacts of the lease sale and completely turned a blind eye to the inevitable impacts that construction and operation of these private energy facilities will have on Coastal resources, the Tribe, and other residents.”

“The intent of this lawsuit is to stop the October lease sale and force BOEM to do a comprehensive Environmental Impact Statement [EIS] that honestly looks at the impact that wind energy will have on Coastal resources,” said Kneaper.

This is a familiar line of argument that has failed in repeated attempts to derail Northeast projects, however.

BOEM review process

Four lawsuits filed by an assortment of fisheries associations, local residents and a rival renewables developer against US flagship Vineyard Wind in US District Court of the District of Massachusetts cited among other issues BOEM’s environmental review process under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

In contrast to offshore oil and gas in which a rigorous EIS is done prior to lease sales, BOEM’s offshore wind process requires only a limited EA to determine the impact of site assessment activities such as installation of meteorological masts and seafloor surveying.

An EIS is only required after a construction and operations plan (COP) is submitted for specific projects after leases have been sold, and BOEM stresses that lease ownership doesn’t guarantee project development.

The claim that this process is insufficient in protecting coastal environments and stakeholders was rejected by the District Court in October 2023, although at least one sponsor, the Texas Public Policy Foundation, has confirmed it has appealed to the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston.
Rick Eichstaedt of Spokane, Washington State-based law firm Rey-Bear McLaughlin, who filed the suit on behalf of the Tribe, told Recharge: “We have additional and different arguments than the Vineyard Wind case and we are in the Ninth Circuit which has a more stringent view of NEPA requirements.”
CTCLUSI's suit also raises claims under the National Historic Preservation Act, “which is unique,” Eichstaedt told Recharge.

Oregon opposition

The Tribe echoes fisheries and other stakeholders in asserting that BOEM has rushed the process without properly consulting them due to political demands from Washington, DC.

President Joe Biden’s administration, which has strongly supported offshore wind and accelerated both leasing and project approvals towards its 30GW by 2030 goal.

“BOEM has failed to meaningfully engage with the Tribe," said Kneaper, adding that BOEM told them: “wind energy development is being driven by the White House.”

Heather Mann, president of Oregon fisheries group Midwaters Trawlers Association, in a recent editorial similarly accused Biden, BOEM, and "urban elites" of “steamrolling” coastal communities in pursuit of offshore wind development.

Lackluster demand

The auction has so far attracted five qualified bidders but based on previous leasing rounds most won’t participate.

One of the bidders, Mainstream Power, ceased operating in the US last year, while another, South Coast Energy Ventures, has no known track record of sector development but may have possible ties to solar power.

Other bidders include EDPR-Engie joint venture Ocean Winds and Iberdrola-owned Avangrid, both of which were successful in the recent Massachusetts-Rhode Island joint procurement, as well as Bluefloat, which has become quite active in global floating wind.

(Copyright)

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Published 17 September 2024, 20:04Updated 18 September 2024, 06:45
AmericasUSOregonBOEM