Trump’s offshore wind moratorium details revealed

Details of the six-month moratorium on offshore wind being prepared by the transition team of president-elect Trump have come to light with some extremely damaging for the industry if they come to pass.

Trump, whose inauguration is set for Monday, January 20, already stated that the US will have a policy “where no windmills are being built” during his presidency.

It was not a great surprise to see words be turned into action even before the presidency began. Republican representative Jeff Van Drew was asked by Donald Trump to draft an executive order to freeze offshore wind activities for six months.

The completed draft was passed to officials within the Trump transition team including Doug Burgum who is the pick for the Interior Department secretary which will hold the reigns of offshore wind.

The details of the executive order draft have been revealed by Heatmap. The US media outlet stated that the REACT Alliance was the primary group behind the document. REACT Alliance claims that its primary mission is “to protect Central California coasts from destructive energy industries.”

The most important part of the draft executive order revolves around pausing permits but also entails several very important provisions.

It orders a full-government review of all offshore wind projects previously approved by the federal government “for reconsideration” based on their impacts on national security, aviation safety, grid stability, biodiversity, and other factors.

It will also ensure a “stop-work order” on all permitted offshore wind projects in construction until that review is completed and instruct each branch of the military to independently assess if offshore wind projects impact their operations in any way.

The Treasury Department will conduct a rulemaking activity to exclude offshore wind projects from any existing tax credits possible under the Inflation Reduction Act until a “comprehensive review” is completed.

The Commerce, Energy, and Interior Departments will evaluate the economic impacts of offshore wind, and order the Energy and Transportation Departments to suspend federal grants and loans to projects related to offshore wind, such as port upgrades and grid alterations.

The Justice Department will also have its hands full and will be required to “reevaluate its current defence of lawsuits related to offshore wind projects” and direct the agency “to pursue settlement discussions in cases where it is legally and ethically appropriate.”

The National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration will undertake a “comprehensive overhaul” of its process for reviewing and approving commercial activities within habitat for species protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

The Health and Human Services Department will study the effects of electromagnetic fields, infrasound and plastic pollution from offshore wind projects on human and animal health, as well as the safety of commercial seafood. Another study will be ordered which will look at the impacts of bisphenol A. BPA is something activists believe could leach from offshore wind turbine components into the ocean.

And finally, order an audit by the Office of Management and Budget of any federal funding to universities and research institutions related to offshore wind.

It is understood that the draft executive order also involved the work of Lisa Quattrocki Knight, president of the Rhode Island anti-offshore wind organization Green Oceans and a board member of the National Offshore Wind Opposition Alliance.

All this work will be a long process but the moratorium will be put in place for that exact reason – to give the government time and slow down offshore wind development.

“We also have to be cognizant of the fact that even though the federal government is going to put major monkey wrenches in the works … it’s going to take a while,” Mandy Davis, president of REACT Alliance and head of the National Offshore Wind Opposition Alliance, told Heatmap.