At a Glance:

Though OSW can create navigational complexity, BOEM and OSW developers have worked closely with the Coast Guard and commercial fisheries to mitigate these impacts. From providing input during the planning stage to technological upgrades to special training, the Coast Guard and other mariners have worked alongside one another to accommodate the growth of OSW.

A Deeper Dive:

It is true that OSW farms can make navigating ocean spaces more complex. These impacts are largely caused by two factors: turbines posing as stationary obstacles, and spinning turbine blades interfering with radar. It is completely understandable to be concerned about these issues -- which is why the government and OSW developers have been working to mitigate the navigational impacts of OSW for several years. As early as 2006, the DoD has been working alongside researchers, OSW developers, and other federal agencies to study and mitigate OSW radar interference. For more information on these efforts, please see the section titled, “Have the DoD and other federal agencies done anything to address radar interference in OSW farms?” Here, we will be looking at the navigational complexities caused by stationary obstacles within OSW farms as they pertain to fisheries and search and rescue (SAR) operations. 

Efforts to mitigate impacts to navigation begin early in the planning stage for OSW projects. BOEM and OSW developers collaborate with federal agencies and local fisheries to determine which locations are best for OSW projects. BOEM has a history of working with the DoD to find project lease areas that do not conflict with the Department’s interests, identifying areas that have so far resulted in 27 leases. Though the DoD has indicated their desire to avoid OSW projects in certain areas in the past, they work with BOEM to find mutually beneficial areas for OSW development. BOEM also consults local fisheries when planning all OSW projects and has gone as far as to entirely remove areas from consideration because of fishing activity, including Massachusetts (Nantucket Lightship), Rhode Island/Massachusetts (Cox’s Ledge), and New York (Cholera Bank). In addition to carefully selected development areas, there are ways of constructing OSW farms to make navigation easier. The US Coast Guard has developed a set of guidelines to inform OSW project planning, called the Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular (NVIC) No. 01-19. This document “provide[s] guidance on information and factors the Coast Guard will consider when reviewing an application for a permit to build and operate an Offshore Renewable Energy Installation (OREI).” The Coast Guard uses this and other resources to advise OSW developers on best practices and mitigation strategies for safer OSW farms.

Understanding Complexities:

Developers and government entities may also choose to conduct trials and provide training to help mariners adjust to this new built environment. In 2005, the UK government conducted a SAR trial in an OSW farm off the coast of Wales. Since then, the US Coast Guard has conducted some SAR training exercises within OSW farms, such as a 2019 exercise at the Block Island wind farm and another in 2020 off the Virginia coast. OSW developers have also collaborated with other organizations to provide training to all kinds of mariners. One example is a joint project between Orsted and the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies in which mariners can practice navigating the Revolution Wind and Ocean Wind projects using a virtual offshore wind farm navigation simulator. Another example is the Rhode Island Navigational Enhancement and Training Program, which provides RI fishermen and for-hire vessels with one free training session on navigating wind lease areas in addition to more advanced navigation equipment.

Of course, some fishermen may still feel it is necessary to avoid their usual fishing grounds in light of OSW developments. To compensate for any lost revenue due to such changes, funds are being negotiated to make up the difference, such as the fisher compensation fund established by Vineyard Wind. However, these funds are currently established on a case-by-case basis. Though fishing revenue lost due to obstructions caused by offshore oil and gas projects is compensated through the Fishermen’s Contingency Fund established under the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Lands Act, a similar fund was not established for OSW projects in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (source). It is important that our government and OSW developers continue to work with local fisheries to ensure that the impacts of OSW are as limited as possible, and are fairly compensated when they are unavoidable.