Comment Period Extended on Oregon Offshore Wind Leasing
WASHINGTON — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has extended the comment period on a draft environmental assessment of proposed offshore wind energy leases off the Oregon coast.
The new deadline for comments is 11:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Friday, June 14.
In April the Interior Department announced proposed auction details and lease terms for two areas off the Oregon coast that the department believes are ripe for offshore wind development.
The proposed Brookings Wind Energy Area consists of 133,792 acres and is located approximately 18 miles from shore.
The proposed Coos Bay Wind Energy Area consists of 61,203 acres and is located approximately 32 miles from shore.
Together, the department said, the two areas have the potential of providing up to 3.1 GW of clean electricity — enough energy to power an estimated 1.1 million homes.
The extension of the comment period on the proposal came after Oregon tribes and a number of other stakeholders asked for more time to review the proposals.
The draft environmental assessment considers the environmental consequences associated with issuing commercial wind leases in the two areas under consideration and associated site characterization activities for instance, biological, archeological, geological, and geophysical surveys and core samples and site assessment activities.
The bureau will also hold an additional virtual public meeting on the Draft EA on June 5, at 4:00 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time.
To view supporting documentation and to comment on the draft Environmental Assessment, go to regulations.gov docket number BOEM-2023-0065.
Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue
We're proud to make our journalism accessible to everyone, but producing high-quality journalism comes at a cost. That's why we need your help. By making a contribution today, you'll be supporting TWN and ensuring that we can keep providing our journalism for free to the public.
Donate now and help us continue to publish TWN’s distinctive journalism. Thank you for your support!
