May 16 is the last day for the public to weigh in on the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s draft environmental assessment focusing on the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area, which is being looked at as a possible area for offshore wind energy development projects.
According to BOEM, the environmental assessment examines the “potential environmental impacts associated with issuing future commercial wind leases, including site characterization and site assessment activities” in the area located about 20 miles off San Luis Obispo County in California’s Central Coast.
“Public comments and input are critical in informing BOEM’s decision-making process,” the Bureau said in a statement.
The Wind Energy Area is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to source 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030, according to BOEM.
More information is available at http://www.boem.gov/MorroBayEA.
Meanwhile, BOEM recently completed a similar environmental assessment on the Humboldt Wind Energy Area, an area 20 miles off Northern California that encompasses 206.8 square miles. Developing offshore wind projects there could mean up to 1.6 GW of clean energy to power roughly 560,000 homes, federal officials have said.
