On June 8, 2022, BOEM published a Notice of Intent to (NOI) Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for US Wind’s wind project offshore Maryland.
- Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS (BOEM-2022-0025)
- US Wind Construction and Operations Plan and Appendices
- US Wind Public Scoping Report
The NOI initiated a 30-day public comment period that ended on July 8, 2022. During the public comment period, BOEM hosted three virtual scoping meetings. The comment period is now closed. Find the comments on http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket No. BOEM-2022-0025. For more information, please see: US Wind Scoping Virtual Meeting Room.
The virtual scoping meetings were held on:
- Tuesday, June 21, 2022; 5:00 PM ET
US Wind NOI EIS Public Scoping Meeting Recording – June 21, 2022 - Thursday, June 23, 2022; 5:00 PM ET
US Wind NOI EIS Public Scoping Meeting Recording – June 23, 2022 - Monday, June 27, 2022; 1:00 PM ET
US Wind NOI EIS Public Scoping Meeting Recording – June 27, 2022
More information can be found in the US Wind Virtual Meeting Room.
Next Steps:
Following the comment period, BOEM will review the comments received to identify issues and potential alternatives for consideration in the US Wind Draft EIS.
Commercial Leases
On August 19, 2014, a commercial lease sale for Maryland was held. At the conclusion of the sale, BOEM announced that US Wind Inc. was the provisional winner of both leases, for a total bid of $8,701,098.
On December 1, 2014, the commercial wind energy leases with US Wind Inc. went into effect. The executed leases are provided below.
Made effective March 1, 2018, by Lease Amendment, US Wind Inc.’s commercial leases 0CS-A 0489 and OCS-A 0490 were merged into a single lease, retaining lease number 0CS-A 0490, and Lease OCS-A 0489 automatically terminated. For additional information, please find the Lease Amendment below:
Site Assessment Plan
On April 7, 2016, a complete Site Assessment Plan was submitted by U.S. Wind, Inc. to BOEM for meteorological evaluations and site assessment. The plan details the methods and procedures U.S. Wind, Inc. will use to collect and analyze meteorological and oceanographic data and information on the conditions of the marine environment within its two commercial leases.
On March 22, 2018, BOEM approved the Site Assessment Plan (SAP) for Lease OCS-A 0490. The SAP approval allows for the installation of and data collection from a meteorological tower, a seabed mounted acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) sensor and a conductivity, temperature, and depth (CTD) sensor. For additional information, please find the approved SAP below:
- SAP Approval for Lease OCS-A 0490
- SAP Conditions of Approval
- Site Assessment Plan for Lease OCS-A 0490
On October 22, 2020, a second Site Assessment Plan (SAP) was submitted by U.S. Wind, Inc. to BOEM for meteorological evaluations and site assessment. The plan details the methods and procedures U.S. Wind, Inc. will use to collect and analyze meteorological and oceanographic data and information on the conditions of the marine environment within its commercial lease. Data collection will be performed using a meteorological buoy.
On May 5, 2021, BOEM approved the SAP for Lease OCS-A 0490. The SAP approval allows for the installation of a meteorological buoy. For additional information, please find the approved SAP below:
- SAP Approval for Lease OCS-A 0490
- SAP Conditions of Approval
- Site Assessment Plan for Lease OCS-A 0490
Construction and Operations Plan
On August 11, 2020, US Wind submitted its Construction and Operations Plan (COP). An updated COP was submitted on November 23, 2021, March 3, 2022, and on May 27, 2022.
US Wind intends to develop, build, operate, and own an up to 2,000 MW commercial offshore wind energy facility. The project is located within federal waters on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), specifically in BOEM Renewable Energy Lease Area OCS-A 0490, approximately 10 nautical miles off the coast of Ocean City, Maryland, and approximately 9 nautical miles offshore Sussex County, Delaware.
The project includes MarWin, a wind farm of approximately 300 MW for which US Wind was awarded offshore wind renewable energy credits (ORECs) in 2017 by the State of Maryland; Momentum Wind, consisting of approximately 808 MW for which the State of Maryland awarded additional ORECs in 2021; and build out of the remainder of the Lease Area to fulfill ongoing, government-sponsored demands for offshore wind energy.
Environmental Review
On June 8, 2022, BOEM will publish a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the US Wind COP submitted by US Wind on August 11, 2020.
If approved, the COP would allow construction and operation of up to 126 turbines that will connect in the area of Sussex County in Delaware. The project is approximately 11.5 statute miles offshore Ocean City, Maryland.
The publication of the NOI opens a 30-day public comment period through July 8, 2022, as part of the process to help BOEM determine the scope of its environmental review.
During this time, BOEM will hold public scoping meetings and accept comments. Comments on the NOI can be found at regulations.gov. The public scoping process is used to identify issues and potential alternatives for consideration in the EIS.
The virtual scoping meetings will be held on:
- Tuesday, June 21, 2022; 5:00 PM ET
- Thursday, June 23, 2022; 5:00 PM ET
- Monday, June 27, 2022; 1:00 PM ET
Registration for the virtual public meetings may be completed here: https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_-h4_l_XFTt2R-k5VO7mt4Q