The Department of the Interior recently started construction of its second offshore wind energy project.
“America’s clean energy transition is not a dream for a distant future – it is happening right here and now,” DOI Secretary, Deb Haaland, said in a Feb. 11 press release announcing the project’s status.
“Offshore wind will power our communities, advance our environmental justice goals, and stimulate our economy by creating thousands of good-paying union jobs across the nation,” Haaland said. “This is one of many actions we are taking in pursuit of the president’s goal to improve the lives of American families and the health of our planet.”
Dubbed the South Fork project, the plan was approved by the DOI in November 2021, the release stated.
The project will be established in federal waters off Rhode Island and New York, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced in a press release. According to BOEM, the project will provide 130 megawatts of wind energy, enough to power 70,000 homes and businesses.
“Projects like this are a critical part of our effort to spur domestic economic growth while protecting the environment,” BOEM Director, Amanda Lefton, said in the release. “Today’s announcement, coupled with critical investments in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will help us create good-paying union jobs and a habitable planet for generations to come.”
The BOEM and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) signed an interagency memorandum in January to support the Biden-Harris administration’s ambitious offshore wind energy goals, the release stated.
Among the many objectives of the project, is to advance wind energy responsibly while protecting biodiversity and promoting cooperative ocean use, NOAA said.
