Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo have announced the approval of the construction and operation of the Vineyard Wind project – the first large-scale, offshore wind project in the United States.
Located approximately 12 nautical miles offshore Martha’s Vineyard and 12 nautical miles offshore Nantucket in the northern portion of Vineyard Wind’s lease area, the Vineyard Wind energy project will generate 800 megawatts of energy, enough to power 400,000 homes and businesses. Up to 84 wind turbines will be installed off the coast of Massachusetts as part of an 800-megawatt offshore wind energy facility. All the turbines will have a minimum spacing of 1 nautical mile between them in the north-south and east-west directions.
The project will contribute to the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal of generating 30 gigawatts of energy from offshore wind by 2030.
“A clean energy future is within our grasp in the United States. The approval of this project is an important step toward advancing the Administration’s goals to create good-paying union jobs while combatting climate change and powering our nation,” said Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “Today is one of many actions we are determined to take to open the doors of economic opportunity to more Americans.”
“Today’s offshore wind project announcement demonstrates that we can fight the climate crisis while creating high-paying jobs and strengthening our competitiveness at home and abroad,” said Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.
Record of Decision (ROD) adopts mitigation measures to help avoid, minimize, reduce, or eliminate adverse environmental effects that could result from the construction and operation of the proposed project.
