BRIEF OVERVIEW: In 2022, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) awarded two lease areas 20-30 miles west of Humboldt Bay to offshore wind developers. BOEM’s environmental review process for offshore wind development is separated into two analyses. First is environmental impact assessment of the impacts of the studies that need to be done, such as the use of buoys, radar, and sonar. Next, after studies of the lease areas are complete, Environmental Impact Statements will analyze impacts from construction and operation of the wind turbines. These processes will be done separately for the two lease areas.
Also in 2022, the California Coastal Commission reviewed plans for studying marine life in the proposed Humboldt Wind Energy Area, 21 miles west of Humboldt Bay. We submitted these comments and these comments. The plans for studies were approved with seven conditions, including a vessel speed limit of 10 knots (11.5 mph) to decrease the likelihood of collisions with whales and other marine mammals.
In 2023, the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation, and Conservation District issued a Notice of Preparation for the proposed Heavy Lift Terminal in Samoa. We submitted these comments on the potential impacts that must be addressed in the Draft EIR, which is being developed. For more info, check out the website we developed with colleagues at EPIC and CORE Hub: FAQs on Offshore Wind Energy.
LATEST NEWS on Offshore Wind Energy:

By the time researchers found the dead whale on a Martha’s Vineyard beach, her jet-black skin was pockmarked by hungry seagulls, her baleen had been dislodged from her mouth, and thin rope was wrapped tightly—as it had been for 17 months—around the most narrow part of her tail.
Researchers quickly learned this was a 12-ton, 3-year-old female known as 5120, and that she was a North Atlantic right whale, a species with just about 360 members left.

Private energy company Crowley Wind Services’s exclusive right to negotiate [ERTN] with the Port of Humboldt Bay – a partnership announced with great fanfare 16 months ago – will expire at the end of the month without the anticipated agreement enlisting Crowley to develop and operate a heavy-lift marine terminal on the Samoa Peninsula, the Outpost has learned.

The Port of Virginia rang in the New Year by celebrating an impressive accomplishment: it is now entirely powered by clean energy, becoming the first East Coast port to accomplish the feat.
The Port of Virginia is powering all of its terminals with electricity from clean resources and accelerating its goal of becoming carbon-neutral by 2040. This milestone puts the port eight years ahead of its original 2032 benchmark of using clean energy to power operations.
The port was already sourcing some of its electricity for its on-terminal cargo operations from renewable sources and a power purchase agreement approved by the Virginia Port Authority Board of Commissioners meant to expand access to clean energy. The agreement allowed the Virginia Department of Energy to allocate an additional 10% of the energy from 345 MW of solar projects from Dominion Energy along with the port’s proportionate share of the original contract.
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More Articles …

  1. Environmental groups have successfully pushed for a ‘green terminal’ strategy at the Port of Humboldt
  2. A New Plan for Offshore Wind Research Will Help Prioritize Seabirds and Other Wildlife
  3. "Green" Offshore Wind Terminal: POLITICO's Letter from Humboldt
  4. New Report from Schatz Energy Research Center Examines Electrical Transmission Challenges for Regional Offshore Wind Development
  5. Pay attention as offshore wind is developed
  6. Humboldt Bay offshore wind terminal sees $8.6 million investment
  7. Newsom Signs ‘Milestone’ Legislation Ending Exemptions for Coastal Oil and Gas Development
  8. Governor Newsom Signs McGuire-Authored Bill to Expedite California’s Offshore Wind Permitting Process
  9. Crowley Questions Mount for Harbor District
  10. Crowley Wind Services Vice President Jeff Andreini is Out, as Allegations of Sexual Misconduct Among Company Management Pile Up
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