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Feds: Vineyard Wind turbines won’t have serious impact on nearby whales
NOAA finds that construction will impact ocean wildlife only temporarily.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the offshore wind project construction off Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket will only temporarily adversely affect nearby whales and will not jeopardize their existence.
The new opinion considers the effects of a proposed issuance of a new Marine Mammal Protection Act Incidental Harassment Authorization, which would allow a small number of marine mammals to be exposed to pile-driving noise while 15 remaining monopiles are installed.
The construction of the piles, NOAA found, will not affect any designated critical habitat, and the agency does not anticipate serious injuries or mortalities of endangered whales, including the North Atlantic right whale.
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The Biological Opinion considers the effects on threatened and endangered species of the construction, operation, and eventual decommissioning of the project off the coast of Massachusetts.
NOAA says the Vineyard Wind project includes several measures designed to minimize, monitor, and report the effects on endangered species. By incorporating the measures in the new opinion, NOAA finds that all impacts on North Atlantic right whales will be limited to temporary behavioral disturbance.
The unpublished report will replace NOAA’s 2021 Biological Opinion on the project. Due to delays, Vineyard Wind could not complete pile driving activities before the expiration date of the incidental harassment authorization, lapsing the last opinion.
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The latest opinion will allow the company to complete its project.
The new Biological Opinion will be available online upon publication in about five days.
Wind blade failure
Following the July blade failure and debris, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management requested emergency section 7 consultation with NOAA Fisheries.
NOAA announced on Friday that the emergency consultation is ongoing, and the agency has provided recommendations to minimize the effects on endangered species during the response and cleanup efforts.
NOAA says the consultation will end once the emergency response actions are complete.
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