Offshore wind developers sought for NJ's fourth round of energy projects

TRENTON — A group of residents spoke out Wednesday against New Jersey's latest offshore wind energy plans, saying that approving another round of projects would harm the environment and be costly for electricity customers.

The state Board of Public Utilities is preparing its fourth solicitation for offshore wind development as part of Gov. Phil Murphy's goal to have 11 gigawatts of energy produced by ocean wind turbines by the year 2040.

To make that deadline, the state must move ahead quickly on the lengthy approval process. More than 90% of the state's electricity was produced by natural gas and nuclear energy in 2022, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Of the remaining 8% of the state's energy that was produced by renewable sources, only a small fraction of a percent was generated by wind.

The Board of Public Utilities is accepting public comment on the draft of its fourth offshore wind energy solicitation through 5 p.m. March 27. The board will seek proposals later this year from offshore wind developers capable of producing between 1,200 and 4,000 megawatts of electricity.

New Jersey's Board of Public Utilities has already approved giving Offshore Wind Renewable Energy Certificates, or ORECs, to three energy companies: Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, Leading Light Wind and Attentive Energy Two. The energy developers are in the process of seeking additional approvals from state, federal and local agencies.

Companies earn one OREC for each megawatt-hour of electricity produced. OREC prices are set for 20 years within the state energy contracts. OREC price fluctuations, which are adjusted for inflation over the course of the contract, are limited to no more or less than 15%.

Mike Dean, a Middletown resident who is critical of offshore wind, told the Board of Public Utilities during a virtual hearing on Wednesday that the offshore wind program will lead to "skyrocketing electricity bills" that will fall hardest on low-income electricity customers.

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"The board… fails to consider the compounding factors of higher electricity rates on society overall, for municipalities, for schools, for hospitals, rail services, small and large businesses, the list goes on and on," Dean said. "All these higher rates will also be borne by the people of New Jersey in the form of higher taxes and higher costs for goods and services."

Other attendees to the virtual meeting voiced their support for offshore wind, such as Capt. Paul Eidman, who owns a fishing charter boat out of Monmouth County.

"As a fisherman, I see the negative impacts of the climate crisis every day out on the water, and feel that the adoption of offshore wind is vital to stalling this change," he told the board on Wednesday. "I encouraged the BPU to steam ahead and get the job done."

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Eidman said he hopes the artificial reefs that are created around the bases of the wind turbines are preserved after the power project is decommissioned.

"These turbines… could be cut down to a navigable height, and then the creatures can continue to use it (the artificial reef created at the turbine bases) as vital habitat that we need here," he said.

Offshore wind projects have divided environmentalists, politicians and Jersey Shore residents, who disagree about whether the turbines' impact on the ocean environment outweighs their environmental benefits.

Erika Bosack, a policy attorney representing the Long Branch-based Clean Ocean Action, told the Board of Public Utilities that while the environmental organization does not oppose offshore wind development, its leadership disagreed with the speed and scale at which New Jersey was approving projects.

Without careful and independent scientific review of offshore wind's affects, New Jersey was forging ahead in a "reckless" manner, she said.

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"Offshore wind development is still outpacing scientific study of the marine environment and will have a major adverse impact on future research surveys," she told the state board.

Bosack said the board should hold off on approvals until a pilot project is complete, a cost-benefit analysis is finished by the federal Government Accountability Office, and the cause of death of numerous whales along the New Jersey and New York coasts is uncovered.

The federal National Marine Fisheries Service, which is investigating the whale deaths, said there is no evidence of a connection between offshore wind development and the animals' deaths. Rather, a large proportion of whale deaths are the result of ship strikes or entanglement with fishing gear, according to the agency.

The New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club, one of the nation's largest environmental organizations, said the fourth offshore wind solicitation marked an important step in growing the state's renewable energy sector.

"Offshore wind will create thousands of green jobs, clean our air, and take the necessary action that we desperately need to address climate change," Anjuli Ramos-Busot, New Jersey Sierra Club director, said in an email to the Asbury Park Press in an email on Wednesday.

The New Jersey League of Conservation Voters also stated its support for offshore wind and the fourth round of solicitations, when reached for comment on Wednesday.

"We know that responsibly developed offshore wind is critical to improving air quality in urban neighborhoods and communities of color even as it helps us head off a climate crisis," said Ed Potosnak, executive director of the New Jersey League of Conservation Voters. "It’s time to get to work, and we look forward to partnering with the (Murphy) administration on building a strong offshore wind industry."

Amanda Oglesby is an Ocean County native who covers education and the environment. She has worked for the Press for more than 15 years. Reach her at @OglesbyAPP, aoglesby@gannettnj.com or 732-557-5701.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Opposition grows as NJ seeks fourth round of offshore wind projects