{"id":325727,"date":"2024-05-03T09:34:07","date_gmt":"2024-05-03T07:34:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=325727"},"modified":"2024-05-03T09:34:09","modified_gmt":"2024-05-03T07:34:09","slug":"offshore-wind-is-gearing-up-to-bulldoze-the-ocean","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=325727","title":{"rendered":"Offshore wind is gearing up to bulldoze the ocean"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From CFACT<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By David Wojick<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Biden Administration has recently produced a wave of plans and regulatory actions aimed at building a monstrous amount of destructive offshore wind. No environmental impact assessment is included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Time scales range from tomorrow to 2050. Here is a quick look at some of it, starting with the Grand Plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPathways to Commercial Liftoff: Offshore Wind\u201d is the grandiose title of the Energy Department\u2019s version of Biden\u2019s vision. Their basic idea is that having successfully traversed the unexpected cost crisis, offshore wind is ready to take off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They point out that even though costs quickly jumped an average of 65%, the boom market is unchanged. The coastal States are raring to go with huge offshore wind targets and laws. In short, it is a seller\u2019s market. Cost is no object.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They note that State mandates and targets already exceed the Biden goal of 100,000 MW by 2050. But why stop there? They say that Net Zero requires an incredible 250,000 MW of offshore wind. At 15 MW a turbine, this is just under 17,000 monster towers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The word \u201cenvironmental\u201d occurs frequently in this 62-page grand vision but it is always about environmental justice.  The cumulatively destructive environmental impacts of lining our coast with towers and cables are ignored apparently not worth mentioning. Neither is cost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next comes transmission, where we have \u201cAN ACTION PLAN FOR OFFSHORE WIND TRANSMISSION DEVELOPMENT IN THE U.S. ATLANTIC REGION\u201c. While the Pathways plan covers the US, this one is just about the Atlantic because that is where the big action is now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This 110-pager is from the Energy Department and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which is actually building the offshore wind monster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The basic idea is simple. Instead of bringing the juice ashore individually from each giant wind facility, we will build a massive high-voltage grid in the ocean. This way, we can move the energy up and down the coast from wherever it is generated to where it is needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the Plan, there are actually three backbone grids: northern, central, and southern, but this detail need not concern us. There is, of course, a huge network of feeder lines connecting the backbones to the legion of individual giant generation facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given the incredibly huge generation numbers in the Liftoff Plan, this is a very big grid indeed. It is a DC grid, so I guess the juice gets turned into AC onshore, where it then ties to the suitably beefed-up land grid. Beefing that up is another huge unknown cost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are many issues with this grand design, including legal and policy ones, and many of these are mentioned. How this ocean-going grid ties into State utility law is an interesting example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Environmental impacts are only addressed as a research topic, not as a potential problem, except for floating wind, where some big problems are mentioned in passing. The feel-good idea of minimizing impact occurs frequently, but what those impacts might be is not said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As is typical for BOEM, they talk about monitoring a good bit. Their approach to environmental impact is let\u2019s build it and see what happens as though extinction of the North Atlantic Right Whale was reversible. The concept of cumulative impacts is not addressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cost allocation is a major economic topic, but there is nothing whatever on what this underwater monstrosity might cost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Returning to today, several things have happened. First, BOEM has announced a lot of new lease sales over the next five years (the Biden II years?). These run from Maine to Oregon, fixed and floating, with five scheduled for this year alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some are in new places, while others are in already crowded areas like the New York Bight. As always, there is no cumulative environmental impact analysis. It\u2019s like BOEM never heard of that, even though the law clearly calls for it when piling on the projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More ominously, there are new regulations governing the permitting of offshore wind projects. The developers love these new rules, which tells us they are not designed for environmental protection. This is from the BOEM press release:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u201dThe final modernization rule will streamline the permitting process and reduce regulatory barriers for developers. It will also lead to greater collaboration between federal, state, and local stakeholders, ensuring that offshore wind projects are developed in a sustainable and responsible manner,\u201d said Anne Reynolds, the American Clean Power Association Vice President for Offshore Wind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The primary \u201cregulatory barrier\u201d is environmental impact analysis. The new rules require agencies to rush these, which means glossing over them with no time for serious analysis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today\u2019s actions may seem small, but given the long-term Plans, they are anything but. It is all part of a huge rush to do something enormously expensive and environmentally destructive for which there is no need whatsoever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This offshore bulldozer must be stopped before it is too late.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Biden Administration has recently produced a wave of plans and regulatory actions aimed at building a monstrous amount of destructive offshore wind. No environmental impact assessment is included.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":325731,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691818154,691818301,691828454,691818864],"class_list":{"0":"post-325727","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-uncategorized","8":"tag-net-zero","9":"tag-offshore-wind","10":"tag-offshore-wind-monster","11":"tag-the-biden-administration","13":"fallback-thumbnail"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/0BlockIsland_016-large-1-scaled-1.jpg?fit=2560%2C1707&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1mJF","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":298656,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=298656","url_meta":{"origin":325727,"position":0},"title":"Key Player In Biden\u2019s Offshore Wind Push Withdraws From Deal With Blue State, Blames Inflation","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"28\/01\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"A major offshore wind developer announced Thursday that it withdrew from a deal with a state utility regulator for two offshore wind projects, citing inflation and other economic pressures.","rel":"","context":"In \"\u00d8rsted\"","block_context":{"text":"\u00d8rsted","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=orsted-2"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/01525856518984.jpeg?fit=1022%2C720&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/01525856518984.jpeg?fit=1022%2C720&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/01525856518984.jpeg?fit=1022%2C720&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/01525856518984.jpeg?fit=1022%2C720&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":298954,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=298954","url_meta":{"origin":325727,"position":1},"title":"Offshore wind and the stress on commercial fishermen","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"28\/01\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Congressional Republicans are sounding the Mayday alarm this weekend to the grave challenges commercial fishermen face resulting from the Biden administration\u2019s offshore wind agenda.","rel":"","context":"In \"Biden Administration\"","block_context":{"text":"Biden Administration","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=biden-administration"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0iStock-471711999-scaled-aspect-ratio-1280-418-scaled-1200x630-c-default.webp?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0iStock-471711999-scaled-aspect-ratio-1280-418-scaled-1200x630-c-default.webp?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0iStock-471711999-scaled-aspect-ratio-1280-418-scaled-1200x630-c-default.webp?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0iStock-471711999-scaled-aspect-ratio-1280-418-scaled-1200x630-c-default.webp?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0iStock-471711999-scaled-aspect-ratio-1280-418-scaled-1200x630-c-default.webp?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":298395,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=298395","url_meta":{"origin":325727,"position":2},"title":"Environmental Laws That Impeded Pipelines For Years Could Trip Up Biden\u2019s Sprint Toward Offshore Wind","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"25\/01\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Environmental rules and regulations that activists have used for years to drown disfavored infrastructure projects in litigation are now threatening a key pillar of President Joe Biden\u2019s massive climate agenda.","rel":"","context":"In \"climate agenda\"","block_context":{"text":"climate agenda","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-agenda"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Biden_Offshore_Wind_65504-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Biden_Offshore_Wind_65504-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Biden_Offshore_Wind_65504-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Biden_Offshore_Wind_65504-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/0Biden_Offshore_Wind_65504-scaled-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":279336,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=279336","url_meta":{"origin":325727,"position":3},"title":"Whale-Sized Revolt: Fishermen Slam Biden\u2019s Offshore Wind Power\u00a0Disaster","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"18\/09\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The wind industry is determined to destroy the marine environment along the Atlantic coast; its fishermen are even more determined to stop them. As whale carcasses mount up along the coastline, those who depend on the sea for their livelihoods have turned on the offshore wind industry and its government\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Biden Administration\"","block_context":{"text":"Biden Administration","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=biden-administration"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/066JJSKZWVRDB3NFZ5OHCTUA2EM.webp?fit=1200%2C921&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/066JJSKZWVRDB3NFZ5OHCTUA2EM.webp?fit=1200%2C921&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/066JJSKZWVRDB3NFZ5OHCTUA2EM.webp?fit=1200%2C921&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/066JJSKZWVRDB3NFZ5OHCTUA2EM.webp?fit=1200%2C921&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/066JJSKZWVRDB3NFZ5OHCTUA2EM.webp?fit=1200%2C921&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":407319,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=407319","url_meta":{"origin":325727,"position":4},"title":"Biden Admin Streamlined Path For Offshore Wind Boondoggles Despite Internal Red Flags","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"09\/10\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Biden administration granted major offshore wind projects financial breaks despite internal warnings of increased risks to taxpayers, according to documents obtained by the watchdog group Functional Government Initiative (FGI).","rel":"","context":"In \"Biden Administration\"","block_context":{"text":"Biden Administration","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=biden-administration"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AQMOwAK-ZyBxmofc0i-gmdXPiD43qTjtP8EvlJ2dQ1PWGRn-C-1X91qDo8ZZpXIoqduP-u57ZSIjkJFYhjnCUONmqQFBpgtLhPEUDXtRLqxY8pkmVISrwASAZ6iPysuCFg86vDNuQsWD-vTcmLBez6uQtHet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AQMOwAK-ZyBxmofc0i-gmdXPiD43qTjtP8EvlJ2dQ1PWGRn-C-1X91qDo8ZZpXIoqduP-u57ZSIjkJFYhjnCUONmqQFBpgtLhPEUDXtRLqxY8pkmVISrwASAZ6iPysuCFg86vDNuQsWD-vTcmLBez6uQtHet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AQMOwAK-ZyBxmofc0i-gmdXPiD43qTjtP8EvlJ2dQ1PWGRn-C-1X91qDo8ZZpXIoqduP-u57ZSIjkJFYhjnCUONmqQFBpgtLhPEUDXtRLqxY8pkmVISrwASAZ6iPysuCFg86vDNuQsWD-vTcmLBez6uQtHet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AQMOwAK-ZyBxmofc0i-gmdXPiD43qTjtP8EvlJ2dQ1PWGRn-C-1X91qDo8ZZpXIoqduP-u57ZSIjkJFYhjnCUONmqQFBpgtLhPEUDXtRLqxY8pkmVISrwASAZ6iPysuCFg86vDNuQsWD-vTcmLBez6uQtHet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AQMOwAK-ZyBxmofc0i-gmdXPiD43qTjtP8EvlJ2dQ1PWGRn-C-1X91qDo8ZZpXIoqduP-u57ZSIjkJFYhjnCUONmqQFBpgtLhPEUDXtRLqxY8pkmVISrwASAZ6iPysuCFg86vDNuQsWD-vTcmLBez6uQtHet.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":291481,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=291481","url_meta":{"origin":325727,"position":5},"title":"100-Year-Old Union-Backed Law Among Snags Derailing Biden\u2019s Green Energy Agenda","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"16\/12\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"A large ship being built to construct offshore wind farms in a way that complies with a labor union-backed law is behind schedule and over budget, compounding a series of setbacks that have complicated the Biden administration\u2019s efforts to expand domestic wind energy, according to The Wall Street Journal.","rel":"","context":"In \"Green Energy Agenda\"","block_context":{"text":"Green Energy Agenda","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=green-energy-agenda"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/OIG-2023-11-13T120759.908.jpeg?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/OIG-2023-11-13T120759.908.jpeg?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/OIG-2023-11-13T120759.908.jpeg?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/OIG-2023-11-13T120759.908.jpeg?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325727","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=325727"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325727\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":325732,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325727\/revisions\/325732"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/325731"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=325727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=325727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=325727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}