As momentum toward offshore wind development in the Gulf of Maine ramps up, Maine Audubon strives to understand its impacts on wildlife and habitat, and is actively working to support development that avoids or minimizes those impacts and that propels Maine towards its clean, renewable energy goals.
But there’s a lot happening, with distinct but related processes moving in the Maine Legislature, federal agencies, and other bodies. To keep our members informed about this critical topic, please read the updates below about some of the important moving pieces for offshore wind in Maine.
Before the updates, though, there are two upcoming events you should know about:
- Dr. Katherine Allen from the University of Maine School of Earth and Climate Sciences and the Climate Change Institute will be joining us on Thursday May 25 at noon to discuss Climate Change in the Gulf of Maine (register here for this free event)
- Maine Audubon’s Eliza Donoghue join a panel of local experts to discuss offshore wind legislation at a May 19 Lunch & Learn hosted by our friends at Maine Conservation Voters (register here).
STATE PROCUREMENT LEGISLATION
“The Offshore Wind Bill” (LD 1895) currently working its way through the Maine Legislature is a critical step in the process of making Maine’s renewable energy future a reality. The primary goal of the bill is to set a procurement schedule, which would commit the state to purchasing energy produced by turbines in the Gulf of Maine. This commitment is required for developers to feel confident that they can invest in Maine. Maine Audubon has been working tirelessly to ensure the bill includes high standards for labor, equity, and the environment, including funding for research, as well as plans to avoid and minimize impacts to wildlife, fisheries, and the marine environment.
Lots of hard work has gone into this bill already, including productive discussion from groups that aren’t always on the same page. But those discussions are bearing fruit, and the legislation was recently endorsed by the Maine Lobstering Union.
The bill will likely have a public hearing soon. We will be looking for the Maine Audubon community to help show their support for the bill, including with a visit to the State House on the day of the hearing. If you’d like to join us, please contact us.
Note: The version of LD 1895 above is not final, and we anticipate that an amendment will be available soon.
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HONING IN ON LEASE AREAS IN THE GULF
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is the federal agency in charge of overseeing offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine. (States only own land up to 3 nautical miles off their shores, further than that is federal jurisdiction.) In late April, BOEM made an early but important step toward identifying potential lease areas in the Gulf. Wind energy area siting is critical to avoiding or minimizing impacts to wildlife, fisheries, and the marine environment – providing feedback on site conditions, resources, and ocean uses within and around the initial Call Area is a focus on Maine Audubon’s advocacy.
BOEM is collecting that feedback on the Call Area in a couple of ways. The first is a 45-day comment period ending on June 12, 2023. Maine Audubon is developing organizational comments and we will be in touch with our members and supporters as the deadline nears with guidance on how you can comment, too.
The other pathway is a series of in-person meetings in Bangor on May 10 and 11. BOEM’s Gulf of Maine Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force will meet to update Task Force members and the public on BOEM’s commercial and research offshore wind energy planning activities and to discuss next steps for the Gulf of Maine. Maine Audubon will be there, and we encourage our members and supporters to join us. If you’d like to attend these public meetings in Bangor, please let us know.
OFFSHORE WIND PORT FACILITIES
In addition to the areas where turbines may be located far offshore in the Gulf, Maine Audubon and our partners are working to minimize impacts to areas associated with offshore wind on the coast. Development of a deepwater port for assembling and transporting turbines offshore is essential for Maine to see economic benefits from offshore wind, but much consideration must precede development. Maine Audubon has for more than a year sat on Maine’s Offshore Wind Port Advisory Group, which provides input into where a port may be located. We also support LD 1818 – An Act Regarding Port Facilities Relating to Offshore Wind Power Projects, a bill that outlines important labor provisions for an offshore wind port and requires the pursuit of federal funds to minimize and mitigate any local environmental impacts of port development.
RESEARCH CONSORTIUM
At the start of 2023, the Governor’s Energy Office convened the Maine Offshore Research Consortium to address concerns around this new industry. Created through bipartisan legislation, and made up of a broad variety of stakeholders, this group works to understand the local and regional impacts of floating offshore wind power projects in the Gulf of Maine. Staff biologist Sarah Haggerty sits on the Advisory Board of the Consortium, which is tasked with – among other things – establishing a research strategy aimed at reducing negative impacts of floating offshore wind projects on the environment and other ocean users. Through collaboration with other states as well as regional and national research partners, the Consortium is working to identify and prioritize preliminary research topics with a goal of publishing a Request for Proposals for research projects later in 2023. The group will also work to identify additional funding sources, standardize data collection and access, and advocate to apply the research results to offshore wind power projects proposed for the Gulf of Maine.
Maine Audubon is excited about the potential for offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine to combat climate change and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. But reducing any potential risk to wildlife and habitat in the Gulf remains our top priority. Visit our website to find resources about the impacts of potential offshore wind on wildlife, including reports and webinars.
