The construction vessel “Jill” marks the beginning of the construction and operations phase for South Fork Wind Farm offshore of Long Island. Credit: Gwen Gallagher/NYSG

Contact: 

Gwen Gallagher, Coastal Climate Specialist, New York Sea Grant, E: geg59@cornell.edu, P: (631) 632-8730

NYSG’s public participation guide helps reduce barriers to public participation in the offshore wind energy development process

Stony Brook, NY, March 23, 2023 - The United States has a target of installing 30 GW of offshore wind energy (OWE) by 2030. New York State is a leader in this effort; the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act mandates that the state procures 9 GW of OWE by 2035. The federal OWE development process includes several opportunities for public participation, but a common barrier is the public lack of understanding regarding when and how to engage in the process.

New York Sea Grant (NYSG) responded to community concerns about the complexity of the federal OWE development process by creating an accessible guide, Federal Opportunities to Participate in Offshore Wind. The guide is designed to demystify the OWE development process, help audiences learn OWE technical language, provide past development examples, and reduce barriers to submitting public comment on federal agency actions.

This participation guide is for interested or impacted New Yorkers, including people living and working on the waterfront or near powerplants, and current ocean users such as commercial and recreational fisheries, aquaculture farmers, and other marine environmental stakeholders. Other Sea Grant programs in the OWE community of practice have expressed interest in using NYSG’s guide to reduce barriers to public participation with communities in areas in their states interested in and/or impacted by OWE development.

A participatory approach to OWE development provides the opportunity for a more just, balanced, and sustainable renewable energy program.

Partners/Reviewers: 

• National Sea Grant Law Center 
• Rhode Island Sea Grant 
• New Hampshire Sea Grant


More Info: New York Sea Grant

New York Sea Grant (NYSG), a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York (SUNY), is one of 34 university-based programs under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program.

Since 1971, NYSG has represented a statewide network of integrated research, education and extension services promoting coastal community economic vitality, environmental sustainability and citizen awareness and understanding about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources.

Through NYSG’s efforts, the combined talents of university scientists and extension specialists help develop and transfer science-based information to many coastal user groups—businesses and industries, federal, state and local government decision-makers and agency managers, educators, the media and the interested public.

The program maintains Great Lakes offices at Cornell University, SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Oswego and the Wayne County Cooperative Extension office in Newark. In the State's marine waters, NYSG has offices at Stony Brook University in Long Island, Brooklyn College and Cornell Cooperative Extension in NYC and Kingston in the Hudson Valley.

For updates on Sea Grant activities: www.nyseagrant.org has RSS, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube links. NYSG offers a free e-list sign up via www.nyseagrant.org/nycoastlines for its flagship publication, NY Coastlines/Currents, which is published quarterly.