Just weeks ago, the Trump Administration escalated its war on wind energy by seeking to halt a major offshore project already fully permitted and under construction. Now, a coalition of states is challenging the Trump war on wind with a new lawsuit in federal court.
17 States Fight for Wind Energy
A coalition of state attorneys general from 17 states and the District of Columbia filed suit on May 5 in federal district court, challenging the Trump executive order directing a halt to all federal approvals, permits, and loans for wind energy projects nationwide (both onshore and offshore). The suit says that Trump lacks the legal authority to simply shut down wind energy development authorized by federal law, and that his doing so is damaging an energy source critical to those states’ economies, energy security, public health, and climate goals. The states ask the court to declare Trump’s executive order unlawful and to direct that federal agencies stop implementing it.
New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is leading the coalition, said, “This arbitrary and unnecessary directive threatens the loss of thousands of jobs and billions in investments, and it is delaying our transition away from the fossil fuels that harm our health and our planet.” New York is the state hardest hit by the prospective loss of the fully permitted project (Empire Wind 1) halted by the escalated Trump Administration anti-wind order in April.
Wind Energy is Here to Stay
In a statement, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) pointed out that wind energy already provides more than 10 percent of U.S. power and employs 131,000 nationwide, including 20,000 in wind manufacturing. It adds that “Offshore wind power is poised to take off on the East Coast, with three projects already in operation and others under construction.”
NRDC’s managing director for power Kit Kennedy remarks, “Homegrown American wind power is powering our nation forward, helping meet growing electricity demand, saving consumers money on their bills, and creating thousands of good jobs. The Trump administration’s actions to block wind projects are misguided to their core. They would raise energy bills for consumers and put workers out of a job. And these actions are clearly unlawful. This legal challenge to President Trump’s memorandum on wind is an important milestone. The state attorneys general are stepping up to protect consumers, clean air, jobs, and the economy in their states.”
Some Good News for Wind Energy
One major project under construction which has thus far escaped the Trump anti-wind clutches is Dominion Energy’s 2.6 gigawatt Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project. Company executives say the project is already 55% complete, with $6 billion invested and 78 foundations installed for the project’s planned 176 turbines about 30 miles offshore from Virginia Beach. Construction is currently actively underway.
