The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has announced the availability of its draft environmental review of wind energy areas offshore the U.S. Central Atlantic region.
BOEM’s Draft Environmental Assessment (EA) considers potential environmental consequences of site characterization activities (e.g., geophysical, geological, and archaeological surveys) and site assessment activities (e.g., installation of meteorological buoys) associated with issuing wind energy leases in the Wind Energy Areas (WEAs) offshore Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. The Draft EA also considers project easements and grants associated with each potential lease, including subsea cable corridors. The public comment period for the draft EA runs through Feb. 12, 2024.
On Dec. 11, 2023, the Department of the Interior announced a proposed offshore wind lease sale in the Central Atlantic WEAs. The proposal includes two areas for auction: WEA A-2 offshore the States of Delaware and Maryland, and WEA C-1 offshore the Commonwealth of Virginia. The proposed sale does not include WEA B-1, located offshore Ocean City, Maryland, due to the need for further evaluation of potential conflicts with other existing ocean uses.
The Draft EA analyses all three areas, including WEA B-1, as the analysis may be helpful to inform additional potential lease sales, which could occur in the Central Atlantic region as soon as 2025.
