A panel of offshore wind experts at a Climate Week event in New York City discuss recent setbacks and goals for the future of the industry (Credit: Alexandra Borenstein)
New York just took a big step toward embracing wind energy.
On Sept. 24, Doreen Harris, President and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) announced that New York State had officially joined the Global Offshore Wind Alliance, further strengthening the ties between regional and national governments across the world. The alliance is a group that seeks to facilitate wind projects through global collaborative efforts, and New York became the 2nd U.S. state or territory to do so after California.
At a Climate Week event in New York City a few hours later, a panel of offshore wind experts convened to talk about the industry and the reasons for recent setbacks in the U.S., where membership in the alliance may not mean a smooth path to offshore wind farm development.
Offshore wind projects in the United States could provide more than 4,200 gigawatts of electric capacity – three times the current U.S. annual electricity consumption. According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, achieving President Joe Biden’s offshore wind target of 30 GW by 2030 could help avoid up to 78 million metric tons of CO2 – a significant push towards fighting climate change.
“The European countries are starting to feel like this is getting back on track – the Asian countries, the South American countries – basically everybody who’s been working in offshore wind is feeling optimistic, and that wasn’t the case for the last few years,” said Greg Lampman, NYSERDA’s director of offshore wind.
The situation in the U.S. remains notably different, despite an influx of recent funding: with help from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act and the Federal-State Offshore Wind Implementation Partnership, over $6.9 billion has been invested in offshore wind development, with the goal of $65 billion by 2030.
At the same time, resistance remains strong in many places in the United States and its territories for a number of reasons.
Lester Carlson, director of the federal Bureau of Budget and Management Research in Guam, said that some residents and local officials in Hagåtña, the capital city of Guam, voiced their concern about offshore wind projects. Guam was one of the most recent sites identified by the Bureau for Ocean Energy Management for offshore wind development.
Last year, Ørsted, a Danish energy company, decided to abandon wind farm development in New Jersey.
Ørsted had to navigate many issues, including opposition that was compounded by supply chain issues and high interest rates.
In 2023, the cost of offshore wind projects in the U.S. became higher than many companies, such as Shell, Avangrid and Ocean Winds North America, were willing to pay. “We had about a 5% change in interest rates over that period of time, so a 40% increase in price to build a project – that’s not sustainable,” said Lampman.
Wind turbines are a solution to energy needs but can pose dangers to marine wildlife. In 2021, there was strong pushback in Hawaii, because, Moana Bjur, executive director of the Conservation Council for Hawaii, told Politico’s Energy Wire, offshore wind farms pose a significant risk to humpback whales and could threaten Hawaiians’ deeply rooted relationship to the ocean.
That same year, ACK for Whales (formerly Nantucket Residents Against Turbines) accused the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management of violating the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act when it approved the Vineyard Wind project.
This lawsuit was dismissed by Massachusetts Federal Court last year, but during construction this summer, a turbine blade broke off. When Styrofoam and fiberglass debris washed up on a Martha’s Vineyard beach, controversy about the project reignited.
By joining the Global Offshore Wind Alliance, New York State commits to advancing offshore wind development and renewable energy infrastructure. But it too may continue to face opposition before the project is finished over fears of harm to the region’s fish population.
“Whether it’s energy exploration, even energy itself, these are things that could threaten the area – the integrity of the area, the ecosystem,” said Alan Lee, who runs a full-time sportfishing charter out of New Jersey and often fishes in New York waters.
Some wind energy proponents on the panel pushed back on a few of the concerns. Wind farm locations are chosen based on good research, scientific integrity, and public input at every step of the process, said Marissa Knodel, a senior advisor at the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
Emily Shumchenia, director of the Regional Wildlife Science Collaborative for Offshore Wind, said stability in research funding could help ensure that wildlife and wind energy are compatible.
New York State continues to move forward with offshore wind developments along its coasts, aiming to provide more renewable energy to Americans – but it will not be an easy process.
“The best thing we can do is continue to approve projects, continue to offer new areas for offshore wind leasing, continue to make sure we have an efficient permitting and review process,” said Knodel. “Providing the transparency and predictability is really what’s needed to move the market forward.”
About the author(s)
Alex is from Montreal, Canada and has traveled the world in pursuit of exploring oceans and marine wildlife, and she is currently a journalist in New York City covering climate change and ocean conservation.