U.S. Studies Plan to Pay Fishing Industry for Offshore Wind Impacts

The Biden administration is considering ways to ensure U.S. commercial fishing industry is paid for any losses it incurs from the planned expansion of offshore wind power in the Atlantic Ocean, according to state and federal officials involved in the matter.

Discussions between state and federal officials, are aimed at addressing the top threat to President Joe Biden’s efforts to grow offshore wind – a centerpiece of his clean energy agenda to fight climate change.

Commercial fishing fleets have vehemently opposed offshore wind projects, labeling them a significant threat to catches of crucial stocks including scallops, clams, squid and lobsters, by interfering with navigation and altering ecosystems.

That opposition has contributed to delays in permitting the nation’s first commercial-scale projects and is among the reasons the U.S. has lagged Europe in offshore wind development. Minimizing those conflicts could speed the lengthy federal permitting process as Biden seeks to add 30 gigawatts of offshore wind to the nation’s waters in just nine years.

The U.S. commercial fishing industry provides over $170 billion in annual sales, to which offshore wind development represents a threat. Adding to the industry’s concerns is the overall lack of information regarding the environmental impacts of offshore wind farms in the U.S. In particular, the effects of wind farms on fish populations is not yet completely understood. Combining this with perceived exclusion from the decision-making process for project development, fishing groups have strongly opposed proposed offshore wind projects.