How would the environmental impacts of the proposed Humboldt offshore wind farm be evaluated and mitigated?

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) are in the process of merging to form the Marine Minerals Administration (MMA), making MMA the lead agency for environmental review of offshore wind. BOEM previously developed an environmental review process that takes nearly a decade. First, the Wind Energy Areas (WEAs) that were identified were specifically chosen with consideration of environmental factors through a formal environmental assessment (1), which was published and included a public comment period. Factors considered included sensitive habitats, migration routes, fisheries, vessel traffic, and more. As part of the process of confirming the Humboldt WEA was suitable for potential wind development, BOEM had to prove to the California Coastal Commission that its plans for leasing activities would comply (2) with the Coastal Zone Management Act and the California Coastal Act of 1976. On April 7, 2022, the Coastal Commission conditionally approved (3) BOEM’s plans.

Once a site is chosen, developers must spend approximately five years conducting site assessments and surveys. These surveys consider everything from the ocean floor to the air above the turbines in order to understand, to the extent possible, the ecosystems in which the turbines would operate. With that data in hand, developers create a construction and operations plan (COP), which is submitted to BOEM for environmental review by the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA). Each COP requires an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), which includes public review and comment periods. The COP must explain how they would avoid, minimize, and mitigate any expected environmental impacts. The COP also requires a high-level decommissioning plan and related funding commitment. BOEM (now MMA) may require additional data collection in order to approve a COP. They will be the final decision-maker for whether the developers have complied with all of the federal laws surrounding environmental protection. For the Humboldt WEA, BOEM (now MMA) decided to conduct both a programmatic Environmental Impacts Statement (pEIS) (4) that will consider the cumulative impact of all 5 current wind energy leases (3 in Morro Bay and 2 in Humboldt) together as well as to conduct individual EISs for the individual COPs, all of which will require public review and comment periods. Before a single wind turbine can be installed, they will have undergone more environmental review than any other project in Humboldt County history. This will provide many different opportunities for the public to weigh in.

Source: BOEM (5)

In addition, there will be several other environmental review processes for the many other aspects of offshore wind, including port development and transmission development. These processes will be managed by the Humboldt Bay Harbor Conservation & Recreation District and the California Public Utilities Commission, respectively.

References

1. U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. (n.d.). Humboldt Wind Energy Final EA. U.S. Department of the Interior. www.boem.gov/renewable-energy/state-activities/humboldt-wind-energy-final-ea 

2. U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. (2022, January 24). Consistency Determination For Leasing Wind Energy Areas Offshore Humboldt County, California. U.S. Department of the Interior. https://documents.coastal.ca.gov/assets/upcoming-projects/offshore-wind/Humboldt-CD.pdf

3. California Coastal Commission. (2022). Th8a: Summary of Commission Action. https://documents.coastal.ca.gov/assets/upcoming-projects/offshore-wind/Th8a-4-2022%20adopted%20findings.pdf

4. U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. (2023, December 20). Notice of Intent To Prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Future Floating Wind Energy Development Related to 2023 Leased Areas Offshore California. U.S. Federal Register. www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/12/20/2023-27930/notice-of-intent-to-prepare-a-programmatic-environmental-impact-statement-for-future-floating-wind

5. Morin, M. (2018, March 5). BOEM’s Environmental Review Process for Offshore Wind Energy Projects. U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. www.boem.gov/sites/default/files/renewable-energy-program/Environmental-Review-and-Compliance-of-Offshore-Wind-Energy-Projects.pdf

6. U.S. Department of the Interior. (2026). Department of the Interior Begins Transition to Marine Minerals Administration. https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/department-interior-begins-transition-marine-minerals-administration