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In New Jersey, the state is pushing the development of the country’s first port dedicated to the offshore wind industry along the Delaware River. Small states like Connecticut are also piling up, investing in port infrastructure to serve industry in Bridgeport and New London. The state has signed contracts to purchase around 1,000 megawatts of offshore wind power, enough to cover around 20% of the state’s energy supply.
“Our efforts to decarbonize our economy create one of the greatest opportunities of a generation,” said Katie Dykes, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
An analysis for the independent grid operator in New York estimated that the state needs 21 gigawatts of offshore wind power by 2040 to meet its climate targets. This is more than half of the capacity of the power plant installed in New York today. A recent Massachusetts study estimated that achieving net zero emissions would require 15 gigawatts, while a consultant from New Jersey estimated the Garden State’s offshore wind needs at 11 gigawatts.
The massive construction created concerns about the location of all the turbines. State and federal officials say there is currently not enough leased ocean to support the reinforcement called for in state plans.
Doreen Harris, who heads the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, estimates there is a 6,000 megawatt gap between available rental areas and targets in New York, New Jersey and neighboring states. She said the federal government’s approach to future leases in New York Bight, the shallow water area between Long Island and New Jersey, will be particularly important. Without new rental areas, the ability of states to meet their wind development goals remains limited.
The Biden administration pledged on Monday to lease a new area of New York Bight, saying it intended to announce a new lease sale by the end of 2021 or early 2022. Amanda Lefton , a former New York environmental policy chief, whom Biden hired to head the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, or BOEM.
“Success at BOEM is going to mean that we have created a more secure process that allows transparency and efficiency for the review of offshore wind projects,” Lefton said in an interview.
Groups of fishermen and moving markets
The prospect of leasing large amounts of ocean for wind development has met with strong opposition from fishing groups. Earlier this month, lobsters from Maine surrounded a survey vessel working off the state’s coast, according to local reports.
Fishing groups have hesitated over Biden’s large offshore energy projects.
David Frulla, a Washington-based lawyer who represents the Atlantic scallop fishing industry, warned it could end as “collateral damage” in the administration’s push for more development.
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