By John Hankins
The Biden Administration announced an agreement to allow for offshore wind development miles off the Northern and Central coasts of California, affecting the Morro Bay and Humboldt areas.
These initial areas for offshore wind development could bring up to 4.6 GW of clean energy to the grid, enough to power 1.6 million homes, noted Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, who said “a clean energy future is within our grasp.” Compare that to the current output of the Diablo Nuclear Power Plant at 2.2 GW, which is scheduled to shut down beginning in 2024.
Of course, the Sierra Club is energized. “As we look forward to a 100% renewable energy future, it’s great to see progress in our region, both from the Lompoc onshore wind project under construction, and major strides being made toward ambitious offshore wind energy,” said our Chapter Chair, Katie Davis.
Local Rep. Salud Carbajal said “offshore wind holds incredible promise as a means to tackle climate change while also creating economic opportunity, and the Central Coast is uniquely poised to reap the benefits ... the future is in renewable energy, and the Central Coast is leading the way.”
The agreement, which identifies an area of development about 17-40 miles offshore of northern San Luis Obispo County, is the product of negotiations conducted by Rep. Carbajal’s Offshore Wind Working Group, created in 2019.
`For years a long-running stalemate with the Department of Defense hampered efforts allowing offshore structures, on grounds that they might conflict with the military’s training and strategic operations. But a compromise to identify a 399 square mile area off Morro Bay and a section off of Northern California was a breakthrough. Defense now supports the idea. Colin Kahl, undersecretary of defense for policy, said “It’s our view that the world faces a grave and growing climate crisis.”
“Developing offshore wind to produce clean, renewable energy could be a game changer to achieving California’s clean energy goals and addressing climate change – all while bolstering the economy and creating new jobs,” Governor Gavin Newsom said. “This historic announcement ... represents the innovative approach we need for a clean energy economy that protects the coast, fisheries, marine life, and Tribal and cultural resources we value so much as Californians.”
When shut down, the Diablo Canyon Power Plant would end California’s reliance on nuclear energy. However, the existing transmission infrastructure on the Central Coast “would be available to reliably deliver the output of both the Diablo Canyon Power Plant and the retired Morro Bay Power Plant,” said Morro Bay Mayor John Headding.
The proposal would make it the largest floating offshore wind project in the United States. Too, Rep. Carbajal noted that offshore wind is one component of a multi-pronged strategy to transform the Central Coast into a renewable energy hub. The Central Coast is already home to the California Valley Solar Ranch and Morro Bay could soon host the largest battery plant in the world. With the addition of an offshore wind project, the Central Coast is positioned to lead the country in renewable energy construction and output.
The plans favor floating wind turbines to avoid impacts to the ocean floor and both areas would likely require major onshore investments in expanding port facilities for construction and assembly. That would create numerous, well-paying jobs.
The federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) in partnership with California, will hold an Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force meeting on June 24 to discuss the identified areas off the north and central coasts. It is moving fast with a lease sale targeted for mid-2022 after an environmental analysis and consultation among stakeholders.
A commercial fishing industry spokesman, Mike Conroy said, “the fishing industry has been told these areas work best for offshore wind developers, but no one has asked us what areas would work for us.”
More information on offshore wind development and other clean energy sources is available at:
http://www.doi.gov/priorities/clean-energy-future
https://tinyurl.com/DOIcleanEnergy
For a local perspective, go to the Environmental Defense Center’s recent workshop on offshore wind energy by its Marine Conservation Program Director, Kristen Hislop:
https://tinyurl.com/WindOnOcean