Wind energy – New York Bight
On August 10, 2021, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in the US announced the availability of a draft environmental assessment (EA) that assesses the potential impacts of the issuance of commercial and research leases within the identified wind energy areas (WEAs) of the New York Bight, and granting of rights-of-way and rights-of-use and easement in the region.
The EA assesses the potential impacts of commercial and research leasing and the granting of rights-of-way and rights-of-use and easement in the region.
The EA considers potential environmental consequences of site characterization activities (i.e., biological, archeological, geological, and geophysical surveys and core samples) and site assessment activities (i.e., installation of meteorological buoys). The EA also considers project easements associated with each potential lease issued and grants for subsea cable corridors in the New York Bight.
Its publication opens a 30-day window for public comment, which closes on 9th September. During this period, BOEM will host virtual meetings on Tuesday 14th and Wednesday 25th August.
On 14th June, BOEM published the proposed sale notice (PSN) for eight potential lease areas within these WEAs, representing over 7 GW of offshore wind capacity. This kicked off a 60-day public comment window which has informed the draft document.