The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will publish a draft environmental assessment (EA) on the offshore wind leasing process in the New York Bight, located offshore New York and New Jersey. The draft (EA assesses the potential impacts of the issuance of commercial and research leases within the nearly 800,000-acre wind energy areas (WEAs) of the New York Bight, and granting of rights-of-way and rights-of-use and easement in the region.
If approved, offshore wind development in the areas could encompass up to eight lease areas totaling more than 627,000 acres, with the potential to generate over 7 gigawatts of clean wind energy.
The EA considers potential environmental consequences of site characterization activities (i.e., biological, archeological, geological, and geophysical surveys and core samples) and site assessment activities (i.e., installation of meteorological buoys). The EA also considers project easements associated with each potential lease issued and grants for subsea cable corridors in the New York Bight.
More info www.boem.gov
