The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management announced the completion of the environmental review for offshore wind leasing in the Gulf of Mexico.
The area reviewed for this environmental assessment was 30 million acres from west of the Mississippi River to the border of Texas and Mexico, according to a BOEM overview. Three sites were identified for potential leasing of offshore wind projects, off of Galveston, Texas, and Lake Charles, La.
“The completion of our environmental review is an important step forward to advance clean energy development in a responsible manner while promoting economic vitality and well-paying jobs in the Gulf of Mexico region," BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein said in a May 30 news release. "We will continue to work closely with our task force members, ocean users and others to ensure that any development in the region is done responsibly and in a way that avoids, reduces or mitigates potential impacts to ocean users and the marine environment.”
Task force meetings to gather information on the environmental impact of offshore wind leasing in the Gulf of Mexico continued through April 2023, two years after the Task Force was created. The BOEM notes that a notice of final sale will come later this year. Documents are available for review online.
The May 30 announcement comes after an October 2022 designation of not one but two wind energy areas in the Gulf of Mexico. Those areas are the sites off of Galveston, Texas, and Lake Charles, La. Combined, the two sites are 682,540 acres, and could power more than 2.5 million homes, according to the BOEM’s October news release.
Sales of these properties are not a done deal. The Bureau must publish a final sale notice with at least a month’s lead time before the sale, according to the May news release. That notice includes information on the time and date of the sale, along with important information about companies that can participate in the sale.
There would be no significant impact to the area, wildlife and people, if the BOEM were to grant up to 18 commercial and research leases in the two identified sites, according to a document of the findings released in May. It is important to understand that although a lease is issued, it does not mean that it contains the proper authorization for activities to begin. Companies that obtain these leases must also submit plans for BOEM's approval before starting any kind of work.
