Saving Seafood

Management & Regulation

A boat flotilla in protest of Vineyard Wind

August 28, 2024 — A group of approximately 15 to 20 boats descended on the Vineyard Wind project site on Sunday afternoon in a show of peaceful protest against the offshore wind industry.

The group, composed of commercial fishermen and concerned citizens, have been energized by the recent failure of a turbine blade that fractured and fell into the ocean, washing ashore debris including fiberglass and foam on Nantucket and Island beaches.

The “flotilla,” as it was called, was organized by the New England Fisherman’s Stewardship Organization (NEFSA), a fishing industry alliance that has said its frustrations and concerns surrounding offshore wind have not been answered by Vineyard Wind or local officials.

Vineyard Wind is building the nation’s first utility-scale offshore wind project, and has been met with significant resistance by both commercial fishermen and locals who are wary about the potential effects of large wind turbines on marine life, fisherman’s livelihoods and on the impacts to their views. The turbines stand as high as 837 feet, with blades as long as a football field. Following the recent blade failure, Vineyard Wind has been forced to halt construction while federal officials conduct an investigation.

Construction on the project has resumed, though Vineyard Wind is not allowed to generate power. GE Vernova, the renewable energy subsidiary of General Electric that manufactures the turbines, has been conducting extensive examinations of the blades to determine the root cause of the failure, and says it will use new algorithms to monitor the health of blades in real-time.

Read the full article at MV Times

Fishermen organizing ‘flotilla’ protest against offshore wind

August 23, 2024 — In response to recent concerns over offshore wind and with debris washing up on Nantucket and Island beaches from a fractured turbine blade, the New England Fisherman’s Stewardship Association (NEFSA) has organized a “flotilla” for this Sunday, bringing fishing boats together to peacefully protest in unison against the offshore wind industry.

Boats will be joining together in a “boat parade” from various areas of the east coast, said NEFSA founder and CEO Jerry Leeman, including the Vineyard, Nantucket, parts of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and potentially New Jersey.

Read the full article at MV Times

Offshore wind’s first ‘spill’

August 22, 2024 — Renewable energy advocates used to joke that unlike offshore oil production, the worst that could happen with turbine arrays would be a “wind spill.”

No more. The July 13 turbine blade failure on Vineyard Wind’s machine AW38 dropped parts of 57 tons of fiberglass, balsa wood and resin coatings into the sea, with fragments washing up on beaches – first from Nantucket, then onward to from Cape Cod to Montauk, at the height of summer tourism.

One month after the fracture, the federal Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) issued an “updated suspension order” to allow some work to resume on the planned 62-turbine, 806-megawatt rated array. The order continued to block new blade installation or power production at the 24 GE Vernova turbines installed before the break.

Reports of broken blade pieces drifting across southern New England waters were cited by opponents off the Atlantic Shores project off New Jersey as proof of their fears that building turbine arrays starting 8.7 miles off their beaches will endanger their own tourism industry.

Read the full article at Workboat

BOEM Begins Process for Second Central Atlantic Offshore Wind Sale

August 21, 2024 — The following was released by BOEM:

To further the Biden-Harris administration’s goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030, and to support the offshore wind energy goals of Atlantic coast states, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) today announced that it will publish a Call for Information and Nominations (Call) for a second regional offshore wind energy sale in the Central Atlantic (Central Atlantic 2). This Call invites public feedback on possible commercial wind energy development in areas off the coasts of New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina.

“Today’s announcement kicks off the process for a second potential auction in the Central Atlantic and provides an important avenue to solicit information as we identify potential areas that may be suitable for future offshore wind energy leasing,” said BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein. “BOEM looks forward to building upon years of working with ocean users, Tribal governments, and local, state, and federal agencies as we drive toward achieving the ambitious goals of the Biden-Harris administration to fight climate change and create good-paying jobs.”

The second Central Atlantic Call represents one of the first steps in the leasing process. Today’s announcement builds upon the input and planning that led to the first Central Atlantic lease sale on August 14, 2024, the fifth offshore wind lease sale held during the Biden-Harris administration.

BOEM will publish the Commercial Leasing for Wind Power Development on the Central Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) – Central Atlantic 2 – Call for Information and Nominations in the Federal Register on August 22, 2024, which will initiate a 60-day public comment period. BOEM will accept nominations and comments through 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on October 21, 2024. BOEM will also host several virtual and in-person public meetings in September and October, including a virtual Task Force meeting via Zoom on September 10-11, 2024. To find out more information and to register, go to: https://www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-activities/central-atlantic-2-public-meetings.

After the public comment period closes, BOEM will review and analyze commercial nominations and public comments submitted in response to the Call. BOEM will also consider information from Tribal consultations and the Central Atlantic Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force to further evaluate the appropriateness of the Call Area for offshore wind energy development and identify draft wind energy areas (WEAs). BOEM will conduct environmental reviews of the WEAs in consultation with the appropriate federal agencies, Tribes, state and local governments, and key stakeholders. After completing its environmental reviews and consultations, BOEM may propose a competitive lease sale for areas within the WEAs.

The Central Atlantic 2 Call Area consists of 13,476,805 acres off New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina Coasts. The Call Area is broad to allow for flexibility to minimize conflicts with other uses, such as commercial fisheries, military activities, and vessel traffic. BOEM will collaborate with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science to help identify where conflicts may exist and inform decisions regarding the most appropriate locations for WEAs.

For more information on Central Atlantic 2, go to https://www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-activities/central-atlantic.

BOEM seeks public input on possible wind energy areas

August 21, 2024 — Bureau of Ocean Energy Management officials are asking for feedback on possible commercial wind energy development in areas totaling 13.47 million acres off the coasts of North Carolina, Virginia, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland, or Central Atlantic 2.

BOEM announced Wednesday that it will publish in the Federal Register on Thursday a call for information and nominations for a second regional offshore wind energy sale in the Central Atlantic 2, one of the first steps in the leasing process. Publishing the call will initiate a 60-day public comment period that ends 11:59 p.m. Oct. 21. Information on how to comment is to be posted Thursday at regulations.gov. Search for BOEM-2024-0040.

Read the full article at CoastalReview.org

The Long Road to Ropeless Fishing

August 21, 2024 — The past decade has not been kind to North Atlantic right whales—or to the fishers who ply the waters where these massive mammals dwell. For the whales that migrate along the North American east coast between Florida and Canada each spring and fall, several perils have caused their population to fall catastrophically, including getting tangled in fishing gear, hit by boats, or afflicted by climate change. From a modern high of 480 individuals in 2010, their numbers have plummeted more than 25 percent to about 350 today.

But fishers have suffered, too. In an attempt to protect the withering whale population, government agencies have restricted fishing gear and closed fisheries along the Eastern Seaboard. For many fishers—including Michael “Chops” Cowdrey Jr., a captain based out of Sneads Ferry, North Carolina—the closures were financially devastating.

Cowdrey is just one of 32 members of the small Atlantic sea bass pot fishery—a community of fishers operating from Florida to North Carolina who use traps on vertical lines to catch the bulldog-sized fish. Cowdrey lost much of his income when, in 2013, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) began imposing a seasonal closure on the pot fishery from November to April—peak sea bass season.

Read the full article at Hakai Magazine

BOEM Issues Offshore Wind Research Lease to State of Maine

August 19, 2024 — The following was released by Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM):

Today, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced the execution of the nation’s first floating offshore wind energy research lease. The lease area covers a little under 15,000 acres located 28 nautical miles offshore Maine on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf and could allow for the deployment of up to 12 floating offshore wind turbines capable of generating up to 144 megawatts of renewable energy.

The research array will allow the State, the fishing community, wildlife experts, the offshore wind industry, and others to conduct in-depth studies and thoroughly evaluate floating offshore wind as a renewable energy source in the region. Research conducted on the array will evaluate its compatibility with existing ocean uses and assess its potential effects on the environment, supply chains, and job creation.

“Floating wind opens up opportunities to produce renewable energy in deeper water farther offshore.” said BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein. “Signing the Gulf of Maine research lease demonstrates the commitment by both BOEM and the State of Maine to promote a clean energy future for the nation. It is another example of a successful all-of-government effort to reach the Administration’s offshore wind energy goals and to combat the impacts of climate change.”

Information gathered from the research lease will inform responsible commercial floating offshore wind development in the future and allow BOEM and Maine to capitalize on innovative technology, while protecting local and national interests and industries.

“Clean energy from offshore wind offers an historic opportunity for Maine to create good-paying jobs, reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, and fight climate change by cutting greenhouse gas emissions,” said Maine Governor Janet Mills. “This lease between the State and BOEM to support the nation’s first research array devoted to floating offshore wind technology is the result of extensive engagement with stakeholders and communities across our state to establish Maine as a leader in responsible offshore wind, in balance with our state’s marine economy and environment.”

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 five 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.

BOEM received an application from the State of Maine for a renewable energy research lease in October 2021. On March 20, 2023, BOEM issued a Determination of No Competitive Interest for the area identified in Maine’s application.

BOEM engaged with the State of Maine Governor’s Energy Office throughout the application review and lease development process to develop a lease that yields high-quality research on offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine. On May 24, 2024, BOEM offered a research lease to the State of Maine after completing a Final Environmental Assessment and associated finding of no significant impacts.

As a research lease, the State of Maine or its designated operator will propose and conduct research regarding environmental and engineering aspects of the proposed project. This information will be made public and used to inform future planning, permitting, and construction of commercial-scale floating offshore wind projects in the region.

Construction activity on the research array is not likely to occur for several years. The lessee is first required to submit a Research Activities Plan to BOEM, which will undergo environmental analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act. Additional details on the timing of construction will become clearer as the permitting process progresses.

More information about the research lease can be found on BOEM’s website and Maine’s website.

Wind developers bid $93M for mid-Atlantic — blowing off Trump 2.0 threat

August 19, 2024 — The Biden administration notched a much-needed win on Wednesday in its bid to bolster the offshore wind power industry, despite the industry’s recent setbacks and the threat of former President Donald Trump’s return.

An Interior Department auction to lease federal waters for wind projects off the coasts of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia drew nearly $93 million in bids — an amount that appeared to quell nerves about the industry’s ability to withstand its political and economic headwinds.

The U.S. offshore wind industry plays a central role in President Joe Biden’s targets to cut carbon emissions from the power sector and stave off the worst effects of climate change. But the nascent industry has been plagued by rising costs, supply chain constraints, worrisome accidents and the risk that Trump, who has spent years attacking wind power, could undermine its progress.

“Despite the electoral uncertainty in the future, these are strong signals of confidence and continued interest in this market,” said Sam Salustro, senior vice president of policy for the Oceantic Network, an offshore wind industry group.

Read the full article at Politico

Feds announce funding push for ropeless fishing gear that spares rare whales

August 16, 2024 — New efforts to convert some types of commercial fishing to ropeless gear that is safer for rare whales will be supported by millions of dollars in funding, federal authorities said.

Federal fishing managers are promoting the use of ropeless gear in the lobster and crab fishing industries because of the plight of North Atlantic right whales. The whales number less than 360, and they face existential threats from entanglement in fishing gear and collisions with large ships.

The federal government is committing nearly $10 million to saving right whales, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said on Tuesday. Nearly $7 million of that will support the development of ropeless gear by providing funds to fishing industry members to assess and provide feedback on the technology, the agency said.

Lobster fishing is typically performed with traps on the ocean bottom that are connected to the surface via a vertical line. In ropeless fishing methods, fishermen use systems such an inflatable lift bag that brings the trap to the surface.

Read the full article at the Associated Press

Vineyard Wind construction resumes one month after turbine blade failure. What we know.

August 15, 2024 — Even as investigations continue into what caused the blade on Vineyard Wind turbine AW-38 to collapse last month, sending splintered fiberglass, rigid foam and balsa wood into the ocean, limited construction is resuming on the 806-megawatt offshore project.

On Tuesday, Foss Maritime‘s Prevailing Wind barge — one of only two vessels in the world capable of transporting Vineyard Wind’s massive turbine components in an upright position — left the New Bedford Marine Commerce terminal loaded with tower sections and a nacelle and headed for the project area south of Martha’s Vineyard.

Also on board was a rack of three blades, though according to the wind developer this was “solely for the purpose of ensuring safe and balanced composition for the transport,” not for installation. The company said the blades will be returned to the commerce terminal later this week.

Read the full article at The Herald News