January 26, 2021 — In a 22 January letter addressed to fishermen and fishing organizations in the U.S. state of Maine, the state’s governor, Janet Mills expressed support for an offshore wind research proposal in federal waters, coupled with legislation that would establish a 10-year moratorium on wind energy development in state waters.
“I want to make it clear that my focus is the research array, proposed for federal waters,” the letter reads. “New, commercial-scale offshore wind projects do not belong in state waters that support the majority of the state’s lobster fishing activity, that provide important habitat for coastal marine and wildlife species and that support a tourist industry based on part on Maine’s iconic coastal views.”