Saving Seafood

Management & Regulation

Biden-Harris Administration Marks Major Milestones for Offshore Wind, Approves Tenth Project

September 4, 2024 — The following was released by BOEM:

The Biden-Harris administration today announced the approval of the Maryland Offshore Wind Project – the nation’s tenth commercial-scale offshore wind energy project approved under President Biden’s leadership. With today’s approval, the Department has approved more than 15 gigawatts of clean energy from offshore wind energy projects – equivalent to half of the capacity needed to achieve President Biden’s goal of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030. Projects approved to date will power 5.25 million homes.

“The clean energy future is now! Today’s milestone marks another giant leap toward our ambitious goal of unleashing 30 gigawatts of offshore energy by 2030,” said Acting Deputy Secretary Laura Daniel-Davis. “Our work to approve the nation’s first ten commercial-scale offshore wind project is the result of the tenacious public servants at the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to expedite the federal permitting process. Thanks to President Biden’s bold Investing in America agenda, we’re tackling climate change head-on, sparking job growth, and ensuring that every community shares in the economic opportunities of this new era.”

The biggest problem facing offshore wind energy isn’t broken blades. It’s public opinion.

September 4, 2024 — Jim Boyd’s heart sank the first time he saw the now-infamous image of a fractured wind turbine blade dangling above the Atlantic Ocean.

Not because of the fiberglass and styrofoam debris collected from the waters and shoreline along Nantucket in the month that followed. Not because of the potential safety implications the blade failure might mean for the Vineyard Wind project, or others.

Boyd’s first thought?

“This is going to be an incredible PR nightmare for Vineyard Wind and the nascent offshore wind industry in southern New England,” said Boyd, a commercial shellfisherman who retired as the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council’s deputy director in 2022.

He was right.

In the wake of the July 13 incident, deemed a manufacturing error in preliminary review, the chorus of concerns over the offshore wind industry grew to a roar. Which has made the job of selling skeptics much harder: not just on Vineyard Wind, but the slew of projects coming up behind it, including the 700-megawatt Revolution Wind farm being built off Rhode Island’s coastline. The developer announced Tuesday the first of 65 turbines in the project had been installed.

Read the full article at the Rhode Island Current

Shrimpers demand action on turtle conservation standards

September 3, 2024 — The Port Arthur Area Shrimpers’ Association (“PAASA”) and the Southern Shrimp Alliance jointly requested that the U.S. Department of State (“State Department”) re-visit and suspend the certifications granted to Peru and Guatemala under Section 609 of Public Law 101-162.

Based on a law enacted in 1989, the Section 609 program is intended to ensure that shrimp harvested in a manner that harms endangered sea turtles is not imported into the United States. Under the program, the State Department, working with officials from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA”) Fisheries, certifies countries and/or individual fisheries as being in compliance with Section 609’s requirements and therefore eligible to supply the U.S. market with shrimp.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Interior releases rule for high-pressure offshore oil drilling

August 30, 2024 — The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement issued a final rule for offshore oil development Thursday, dictating how to safely drill into oil reservoirs with extremely high temperatures and pressure.

The offshore oil industry has increasingly shifted toward drilling into deep waters in the Gulf of Mexico, where in some cases the oil reservoir pressure exceeds 15,000 pounds per square inch and temperatures top 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

BSEE’s new requirements are a response to the high risks of drilling in these areas. It was at a high-pressure prospect in 2010 that a failed blowout preventer in an exploratory well led to an explosion that killed 11 men and sank the Deepwater Horizon oil rig.

Read the full article at E&E News

US lawmakers push to improve distribution of fishery disaster aid

August 28, 2024 — U.S. federal legislators are coalescing around a bill to streamline the government’s process for doling out financial relief related to fishery disasters.

Even when a request for aid is swiftly filed with the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), it can take several months to multiple years for fishers to receive federal money. For fishers who often live on tight margins, surviving the loss of income from a fishery disaster for long periods without federal relief is a difficult prospect

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Gulf Shrimpers Warn New Offshore Wind Interest off Texas, Louisiana Could Harm Industry

August 28, 2024 — An unsolicited proposal from Hecate Energy Gulf Wind for two commercial leases for wind energy development off the coast of Texas and/or Louisiana has raised significant new concerns for the U.S. shrimp industry, the Southern Shrimp Alliance said in a statement.

The Hecate proposal, which may potentially support hydrogen production, has the potential to close fishing grounds, interrupt maritime radar, and harm sensitive species and habitats for which shrimpers are held accountable under federal statutes, according to the SSA.

Read the full article at Seafoodnews.com

Fishermen stage floating protest at Vineyard Wind site

August 27, 2024 — As concerns mount over the July collapse of one Vineyard Wind turbine blade, a “flotilla” of about two dozen commercial and recreational fishing vessels steamed to the wind farm on Sunday to protest offshore wind development and its impact on the marine ecosystem.

The vessels, hoisting anti-offshore wind flags and blasting air horns, departed early Sunday morning from ports in New Bedford, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, Rhode Island and along the Cape, converging at about noon on the site of the crippled Vineyard Wind turbine.

“The blade collapse was an eye-opener to a lot of people who before didn’t know that offshore wind is a disaster for the ocean,” said Shawn Machie, 54, who is captain of the New Bedford scalloper F/V Capt. John.

On July 13, one of the three blades on turbine AW38 sustained damage while undergoing testing. Five days later, a 300-foot section of the blade collapsed into the water leaving fiberglass debris floating in fishing grounds and scattered across beaches, mostly on Nantucket. It marked an inflection point as the first industrial energy incident in this era of offshore wind development in waters off the Northeast coast.

Read the full story at The New Bedford Light

Cape Cod regional leaders ask feds for more direct role in plans for offshore wind

August 26, 2024 — Barnstable County officials are calling on the federal government to involve the community more directly in offshore wind plans for the Outer Cape.

The Assembly of Delegates voted Wednesday to send a letter to the Biden administration making that request.

In an interview before the vote, Assembly Speaker Pat Princi of Barnstable said Cape Codders need to be heard.

“There’s just a lot that really hasn’t been talked about that is of major concern to residents who live here, work here, who support their families here,” he said.

Before the meeting, Wellfleet Delegate Lilli-Ann Green drafted a letter to Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland asking to turn back the clock five years on Outer Cape offshore wind.

Read the full article at CAI

Vineyard Wind And GE Vernova Respond To Community Questions After Blade Failure

August 26, 2024 — After weeks of avoiding questions from the community, GE Vernova and Vineyard Wind have responded to a list of inquiries from the Town of Nantucket. Those answers are included below, along with relevant context. Some questions and answers have been abbreviated or omitted for brevity or edited for grammatical correctness.

  • Question: Has this incident occurred elsewhere?

Answer: A Haliade 220-X blade incident has not occurred elsewhere due to a manufacturing deviation. There was an offshore blade event in the UK, but it was due to an unrelated installation issue. Answered by GE Vernova.

Context: While this answer is factually correct, it is worded to avoid mentioning similar issues that have occurred with a series of GE Vernova blades other than the Haliade 220-X.

  • Question: How long do we expect debris to wash up?

Answer: On August 14, 2024, the companies safely completed the removal of the hanging pieces of the affected blade through a safe controlled cutting operation. They also removed the debris that settled on the turbine platform. They are now advancing to the next step of the action plan by preparing for the removal of the blade root and addressing debris on the seafloor. The companies maintain teams at sea, by air, and on the shore in Nantucket and surrounding areas to address any additional debris that may be found. Answered by Vineyard Wind and GE Vernova.

Read the full article at the Nantucket Current

Fishing Flotilla Protests at Still-Damaged Vineyard Wind Turbine As Debris Continues to Wash Ashore

August 26, 2024 — A flotilla of fishermen from across the East Coast gathered yesterday near the site of a damaged Vineyard Wind turbine to protest the perceived risks posed by offshore wind projects to the ocean and maritime communities. The protest, which also included a “Hands Across the Beach” demonstration on shore, highlighted growing concerns among fishermen about the impact of large-scale wind farms on their livelihoods and the environment.

Vineyard Wind, which has been constructing towering turbine structures off the coast, has faced increasing criticism from local fishing communities. The concerns have escalated following a turbine blade failure in July that left fiberglass debris in the surrounding waters. Fishermen fear that the turbines, which are taller than the Statue of Liberty, may not withstand the harsh winter conditions and powerful storms of the North Atlantic.

Read the full article at Shore News Network