The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and New Jersey Board of Public Utilities will soon issue a request for proposals (RfP) for environment studies into the impact of offshore wind.
The state government agencies will fund studies to provide enhanced scientific information on the impacts of offshore wind energy development off New Jersey’s coastline as well as the state’s entry into a regional offshore-wind science collaborative.
These actions, identified as priorities by a diverse group of stakeholders, are the first funded through the offshore wind Research & Monitoring Initiative (RMI).
This collaborative effort by both agencies is working to coordinate and expand research into impacts of offshore wind development on wildlife and fisheries.
The projects are funded by two offshore wind farm developers through a fund administered by the state.
BPU president Joseph Fiordaliso said: “Through the Research & Monitoring Initiative and these initial awards, we are supporting efforts that collect critical baseline data on whales and their movements along New Jersey’s coastline, as well as contributing to regional collaboration to study the impact of offshore wind development on recreational and commercial fisheries and our rich and diverse wildlife.
“We are committed to developing New Jersey’s offshore wind resources in an environmentally sensitive and cost-effective way so that we can reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, improve air quality and public health, and protect the planet for generations to come.”
The RMI will also release a request for proposals for a passive acoustic monitoring project to better understand the movements and behaviours 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 larger effort which includes collaboration with nearby state, regional, and federal entities that seeks to protect marine mammals as offshore wind farms are developed along the eastern seaboard.
As part of the BPU’s second wind energy solicitation, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind and Orsted’s Ocean Wind 2 committed $10,000 per megawatt of project-size-awarded capacity – or about $26m – to fund research and ecological monitoring of offshore wind.