The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management today announced that it is seeking comments by Monday, July 27 on a draft Vineyard Wind Offshore Wind Energy Project Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement analyzing reasonably foreseeable effects from an expanded cumulative activities scenario for offshore wind development, new fishing data, a new transit line alternative, and changes to the Construction and Operations Plan. In conjunction with the comment period, BOEM will hold a series of virtual public meetings on June 26, June 30, July 2, July 7, and July 9.
BOEM Acting Director Walter Cruickshank said that public input is “a core pillar to the renewable energy program and the expanded cumulative scenario is a direct result of stakeholder feedback received by our agency,” adding that “[t]his expanded cumulative scenario is intended to better understand future impacts of the offshore wind industry while being responsive to the concerns of other ocean industries.”
Vineyard Wind seeks to develop an 800MW wind energy facility in federal waters off Massachusetts, including the installation of 100 wind turbine generators, up to two offshore substations or electrical service platforms, and one export cable landfall near Barnstable, MA. Onshore construction and staging would take place in New Bedford.
The draft Supplemental EIS analyzes six action alternatives (including one with two sub-alternatives) and a No-Action alternative, with the Alternative A Proposed Action being that the Vineyard Wind project would proceed within the range of the of the design parameters of the company’s Construction and Operations Plan and subject to applicable mitigation measures.
