BOEM Extends New York EA Public Comment Period

On 6 June, the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published the Environmental Assessment (EA) for Commercial Wind Lease Issuance and Site Assessment Activities on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Offshore New York for a 30-day public comment period.

In response to stakeholder requests, BOEM has extended the public comment period. The original comment deadline, set for 6 July, has been extended until 13 July.

The EA considers the potential impacts of the proposed action and an analysis of reasonable alternatives to the proposed action, excluding the area within two nautical miles of the traffic separation schemes, and no action.

BOEM will consider public comments on the EA in determining whether to issue a Finding of No Significant Impact, or conduct additional analysis under NEPA. Federal, state, tribal, and local governments and/or agencies and the public can submit written comments on the EA.

In addition to the EA, BOEM published a ”Proposed Sale Notice (PSN) for Commercial Leasing for Wind Power on the Outer Continental Shelf Offshore New York” in the Federal Register, which includes a 60-day public comment period ending on 5 August, 2016.

The US Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Abigail Ross Hopper announced the proposed lease sale and Environmental Assessment for 81,130 acres offshore New York for commercial wind energy leasing on 2 June.

The proposed lease area, approximately 11 miles south of Long Island, is identical to the New York Wind Energy Area, which Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) identified earlier this year in consultation with members of its New York Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force.