Murphy Administration Announces Funding for Offshore Wind Environmental Studies, Entry to Responsible Offshore Wind Science Alliance

As usual, Waterspirit is following ongoing science, advocating for stakeholder engagement and amplifying calls to action that go to the source of climate crisis prevention: fossil fuel pollution. The below is the latest message from NJ Governor Murphy’s Administration:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 19, 2023

Contact: Lawrence Hajna (609) 984-1795
Peter Peretzman (BPU) (609) 900-5626

MURPHY ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES FUNDING FOR OFFSHORE WIND ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES, ENTRY INTO RESPONSIBLE OFFSHORE WIND SCIENCE ALLIANCE

(23/P025) TRENTON – The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and New Jersey Board of Public Utilities today announced nearly $2 million in additional funding for efforts to ensure the safe and ecologically responsible development of offshore wind energy to combat the worsening impacts of climate change.

Projects funded through the state’s Offshore Wind Research & Monitoring Initiative (RMI) include deployment of a whale detection buoy, a study to evaluate general species diversity in offshore wind development areas, and another to better understand offshore movement of harbor seals. Funding is also being provided for New Jersey’s entry into the Responsible Offshore Science Alliance (ROSA), a nonprofit organization leading a collaborative effort advancing fish and fisheries research related to offshore wind.

“Development of offshore wind energy is a vital component of the Murphy Administration’s work to mitigate and respond to the worsening impacts of climate change,” said Commissioner of Environmental Protection Shawn M. LaTourette. “These projects will continue to advance the collection of baseline scientific information that will help ensure the responsible development and operation of offshore wind facilities that protect our coastline and its natural resources.”

“We are deeply committed to doing all we can to ensure our offshore wind projects are implemented in as ecologically responsible a way as possible,” said NJBPU President Joseph L. Fiordaliso.  “We are excited about the new RMI grants and their ability to assist us in protecting the environment as we move forward to reach Governor Murphy’s goal of 11 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2040.”

The RMI is a collaborative effort of the DEP and BPU to coordinate research on potential impacts of offshore wind energy development and builds upon extensive work in this area by federal partners, including the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

As part of the BPU’s second wind energy solicitation, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, LLC, and Ocean Wind II, LLC committed $10,000 per megawatt of project-nameplate capacity awarded – a total of about $26 million – to fund regional research and ecological monitoring. To date, RMI has provided $8.5 million in funding for offshore wind-related projects.
The awards being announced today include:

  • Deployment and maintenance of a whale detection buoy off the coast of Atlantic City:  The buoy will listen for whales, and detections will be reviewed and used to inform NOAA’s Slow Zones for Right Whales program to mitigate risks associated with vessel strikes and future construction noise. This project will also examine how to best use these data to inform management moving forward, including optimizing the response time of the warning signal sent to vessels and the buoy network along the eastern seaboard, educating stakeholders on the capabilities of this technology, and fostering dialogue about how to implement near real-time acoustic monitoring into wind energy development activities. $602,135 was awarded to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute for this project, and the award will be facilitated by the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium.

  • An Environmental DNA (eDNA) study: eDNA is a relatively new, non-invasive approach for monitoring species that are protected or otherwise important to maintaining the ecological integrity of coastal waters and are important to New Jersey’s recreational and commercial fisheries. Small samples of ocean water will be collected alongside traditional survey methods in and around the wind lease areas, and then processed to identify and quantify organisms that were recently present in the vicinity of the sample collection location. This study will result in data that will contribute to the future assessment of potential impacts of OSW on the diversity of organisms in the waters off New Jersey’s coastline during and after OSW construction. $1.2 million was awarded to Monmouth University to conduct the study.

  • A study to better understand the movement patterns and health of New Jersey’s harbor seals, a key predator species: A robust population of harbor seals spends its winters in the Great Bay area north of Atlantic City, but more data is necessary is to better understand how harbor seals use the offshore space where wind energy leases are located. This study will tag and collect baseline health data for harbor seals, such as stress hormones, that should help assess the impacts of future OSW-related activities, including construction and operation, on harbor seals. $682,890 was awarded to Stockton University and the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society for this study.

  • Membership in the Responsible Offshore Science Alliance (ROSA). ROSA is a nonprofit organization leading a collaborative effort to advance research and monitoring on the potential effects of OSW on fish and fisheries, resources that have high social and economic value to New Jersey.  Supporting ROSA complements New Jersey’s membership in the Regional Wildlife Science Collaborative for Offshore Wind (RWSC) and contributes to the greater regional effort to leverage existing and ongoing research, address data gaps, and meet long-term monitoring needs. ROSA provides opportunities for interactions between fishing industry representatives, federal and other state partners, offshore wind developers, and the public. $100,000 was allocated for a two-year membership.

In addition, RMI has issued an updated Request for Proposal to deploy archival passive acoustic monitoring equipment to better understand the distribution and habitat use of baleen whale species, including the endangered North Atlantic Right Whale, in the waters along New Jersey’s coastline. This project will be part of a larger effort that includes collaboration with nearby state, regional, and federal entities seeking to protect marine mammals as offshore wind farms are developed along the eastern seaboard. The updated RFP will leverage funding towards a greater number of listening devices, prioritizing detection coverage. A future solicitation will be created for regional spatial analyses of whale movement and distribution patterns.

RMI projects are selected to address the short-term highest priority research needs, which were identified and based on input gathered from subject matter experts, stakeholders including a variety of state, federal, fishing industry, and environmental organizations, and the New Jersey Environmental Resources Offshore Wind Working Group.

Providing funding for these projects demonstrates New Jersey’s commitment to regional cooperation and will provide important baseline data needed for future assessments of changes to our natural resources resulting from wind farm construction, operation, and decommissioning.

For more information about the Offshore Wind Research & Monitoring Initiative, visit https://dep.nj.gov/offshorewind/rmi
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
Follow DEP on Facebook @newjerseydep, on Twitter @NewJerseyDEP, on Instagram @nj.dep and LinkedIn @newjerseydep

Follow BPU on Facebook @NJBPU, on Twitter @NJBPU and on Instagram @njboardofpublicutilities

Environmental Justice Law Adopted In New Jersey 📜

Today, Governor Murphy announced the beginning of the implementation of the landmark environmental justice cumulative impacts law: the adoption of rules. Marcus Sibley, MSW, Chairperson of NJ State Conference NAACP Environmental Justice Committee aptly shared:

“Expecting entities to do the right thing hasn’t ever been a winning strategy for our constituents most vulnerable to exploitation, adverse environmental impacts, gross inaction and divestment.”

This culmination is the result of steadfast efforts by a broad network, only growing in size and power, for ~15 years. We are beyond grateful to all those who have been advocating for this law’s strength.

Will this translate into the denial of air permits and the denial of fossil fuel methane emitting projects? Will it provoke a plan for divestment from fossil fuel in New Jersey’s state pension? So far, not yet. Governor Murphy, during the #PeoplesEarthWeek, still has the opportunity to declare a climate emergency and lead as though a livable future was an agenda priority.

Will the spirit of the law be fully embraced? Time will tell. In the meantime-given the lack of environmental justice in New Jersey- today people were arrested protesting outside a hazardous, polluting compressor station construction site in West Milford.

To read the full text of the rules adoption, click here. Want to help shine a light on opportunities for peace through justice? Check out our Calls to Action Page for ways to use your voice.

Waterspirit in Earth Beat, a Project of the National Catholic Reporter

Waterspirit’s Executive Director, Blair Nelsen, was quoted in this recent piece, “UN Water Conference shows global consensus on universal right to water,” following the UN Water Conference.

So far, only the states of Pennsylvania, Montana and New York have passed state-level "green amendments," which Nelsen explained "are constitutional amendments that protect our rights to clean air, clean water and healthy environments for this and future generations." They are similar to actions taken by several U.N. bodies, including a resolution by the U.N. General Assembly last year declaring that it is a universal human right to have access to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.

"Every U.S. state that passes a green amendment comes closer to enacting these high-level U.N. commitments on the ground," she said.

To read the full article, click here. To learn more about our campaign to pass a Green Amendment in New Jersey, click here. To learn more about our activities to broaden green infrastructure throughout the state, click here.

NJDEP Statement on East Coast Whale Mortalities

**Please continue to amplify Save Coastal Wildlife’s petition we have linked to on our Calls to Action page. The following has just been released from NJDEP and Waterspirit’s team is sharing the same. **

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 15, 2023

Contact: Lawrence Hajna (609) 984-1795
Caryn Shinske (609) 984-1795
Vincent Grassi (609) 984-1795

NJDEP STATEMENT ON EAST COAST WHALE MORTALITIES

(23/P021) TRENTON – In consultation with NOAA Fisheries, the lead federal agency responsible for evaluating potential impacts to marine life and habitats from human activities in federal waters, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has been monitoring an unusual humpback whale mortality event that has been affecting Atlantic coast states since January 2016. In January of this year, the DEP began receiving concerns from stakeholders that the development of offshore wind energy infrastructure off New Jersey’s coast is causing whale mortality. All offshore wind survey activities have been permitted by NOAA Fisheries and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and deemed safe for marine mammals, i.e., no injurious activities have been permitted for offshore wind developers.

As of March 2023, no offshore wind-related construction activities have taken place in waters off the New Jersey coast, and DEP is aware of no credible evidence that offshore wind-related survey activities could cause whale mortality. While DEP has no reason to conclude that whale mortality is attributable to offshore wind-related activities, DEP will continue to monitor. 

However, DEP remains concerned that ocean temperatures, which are projected to increase due to human-caused climate change caused primarily by the burning of fossil fuels, will continue to adversely impact marine mammals, including whales, their food sources, habitats, and migration patterns, as summarized in the New Jersey Scientific Report on Climate Change (Chapter 5.9). Due to these changes in ocean temperature and water chemistry, populations of marine species – including menhaden, a key whale food source—adapt by moving into new areas where conditions are more favorable. Changes that draw prey fish landward similarly increase the risk that these fish and their predators, including whales, may be drawn into conflict with human activities, such as vessel strikes that may increase whale mortality. 

DEP is dedicated to the conservation, protection, and restoration of all natural resources, including aquatic habitats and the fish and wildlife that rely upon the sound management of marine environments. In fulfilling this mission, DEP administers New Jersey’s Coastal Zone Management Program, regulates certain activities in state waters, including the development of energy-generating facilities and infrastructure, and otherwise coordinates environmental reviews with federal government agencies. DEP expects that all regulated entities, including offshore wind project sponsors, pursue development objectives responsibly, including assessing potential environmental impacts and avoiding, minimizing, and mitigating likely adverse effects upon natural resources, including marine mammals and their habitats.

In addition, the Offshore Wind Research & Monitoring Initiative (RMI), a collaborative effort of the DEP and BPU, has authorized $8.5 million in funding to date for scientific efforts to ensure the safe and ecologically responsible development of offshore wind energy.  As part of the BPU’s second wind energy solicitation, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, LLC, and Ocean Wind II, LLC committed $10,000 per megawatt of project-nameplate capacity awarded – a total of about $26 million – to fund regional research and ecological monitoring of the environmental impacts of offshore wind. The projects are being implemented by a variety of academic and research entities and include work to evaluate and minimize impacts to a variety of marine wildlife, including whales.

For more details on RMI, visit https://dep.nj.gov/offshorewind/rmi/ Click on the “Projects” tab for more information on the various research projects.

For information from NOAA on humpback whale mortalities, visit 2016–2023 Humpback Whale Unusual Mortality Event Along the Atlantic Coast | NOAA Fisheries

For a DEP microsite on whale mortalities, visit https://dep.nj.gov/humpback-whale-unusual-mortality-event/