DELMARVA - President Donald Trump has begun his second term with a slew of executive orders including one pertaining to offshore wind, a topic mired in ongoing debate here on Delmarva.
On January 20, Inauguration Day, President Trump signed an executive order provisionally halting any further offshore federal wind lease sales as well as any further approvals of offshore permits, rights of way, renewals, or loans.
The Trump administration said they would also conduct a thorough review of existing wind energy leases and weigh the decision of whether or not to terminate them. Trump’s executive order cited the need to analyze the existing projects’ ecological, economic, and environmental impacts.
The Secretary of the Interior, alongside the Attorney General, has been tasked with reviewing “the necessity of terminating or amending” those existing projects, any legal bases for doing so, and submitting their report to Trump.
The Presidential Memorandum on offshore wind projects took effect Tuesday, January 21.
"This really covers all the issues that we've been raising, it's a very thorough executive order, it was done in a very thoughtful way," said Senator Mary Beth Carozza(R). "It's just very encouraging, very uplifting that on day one President Trump delivered on his promise."
Currently, US Wind has final approval from the federal government for an offshore wind farm off Delmarva. At the state level, both Maryland and Delaware have issued their approvals for various aspects of US Wind’s planned development, which includes up to 114 wind turbines off the coasts of Worcester and Sussex Counties.
Monday's executive order now leaves the future of US Wind's project off Delmarva's coast up in the air. The offshore wind company, however, doesn't seem rattled.
Nancy Sopko, US Wind's Vice President of External Affairs provided WBOC with a statement on Tuesday.
“US Wind’s projects are poised to deliver on the President’s promise of achieving American energy dominance, especially now that we have received all of our federal permits,” said Sopko. “The energy we will produce off Maryland’s shores will help to meet the region’s unquenchable thirst for new electricity, power more than 600,000 homes, and support good American jobs. We will be at the forefront of an American manufacturing renaissance that relies heavily on American steel by establishing a new factory at the old Bethlehem Steel facility in Baltimore. This site, once used to produce the steel beams for the Empire State Building, will rise again to meet the demands of a new American industry. We look forward to working with the new administration to fully realize the potential of American ingenuity and innovation.”
While US Wind remains confident, Delegate Wayne Hartman(R) believes the Trump administration will find issues with how the project was approved.
"The meetings that we've attended, the responses that we've gotten, I feel like there was a pre-approved agenda and it was just processes that were being had or gone through and there was really no validity or merit to them," said Hartman.
In a statement released Monday night, the National Wildlife Federation's Amber Hewett defended the responsible development of offshore wind and the environmental benefits of the projects.
"Through rigorous public engagement over a multi-year process, offshore wind sites are carefully selected with environmental factors in mind, and stringent wildlife protection measures are required throughout all stages of development," Hewett said. "Climate change poses an existential threat to wildlife and habitats, and prioritizing energy solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is critical to the long-term viability of the most vulnerable species."
On the campaign trail and in the weeks leading up to his presidency, Trump repeatedly vowed to “end” the offshore wind industry. Just days ahead of Trump’s inauguration, New Jersey Congressman Jeff Van Drew said he had drafted an executive order to temporarily halt offshore wind development for Trump, an order he hoped the president would sign on day one.
