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NOAA staff and stakeholders participate in a BOEM Offshore Wind Task Force meeting in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. NOAA scientists presented on spatial modeling. (NOAA)
NOAA actively collaborates with federal agencies — such as BOEM and the Department of Energy (DOE) — as well as state agencies, federally recognized tribes, regional partnerships, researchers, the private sector, the maritime community, nonprofits and other stakeholder groups, to advance mutual understanding of offshore wind energy development, including through the use of data sharing agreements and joint scientific studies related to offshore wind energy.
Recent coordination activities include:
- Entering into a Memorandum of Understanding with BOEM to ensure early and sustained coordination at key decision points during the offshore wind energy development process to leverage the responsibilities and expertise of each agency.
- Collaborating with the Departments of Energy, Interior and Transportation to advance U.S. leadership in floating offshore wind energy affordability and sustainable deployment as part of the Floating Offshore Wind Shot.
- Collaborating with BOEM to produce advanced ocean planning models to inform siting of wind energy areas.
- Partnering with DOE to establish the Offshore Wind Sea Grant Liaison program, which provides learning opportunities and science-based tools and resources to offshore wind stakeholders to support informed choices.
- Developing a joint federal fisheries survey mitigation strategy and a draft North Atlantic right whale strategy with BOEM.
- Supporting research projects in collaboration with DOE to advance social science and technology research that examines intersections between offshore wind development and fishing and coastal communities in the Northeast, as well as performing field campaigns that provide the detailed observations needed to improve numerical weather prediction models for improved hub-height wind and sea state forecasts.
- Engaging with inclusive regional ocean partnerships that convene state and federal agencies, tribes, ocean users and industry representatives (including federal fishery management councils, interstate fisheries commissions and harbor safety committees) to expand the network of NOAA-knowledgeable stakeholders in productive dialogues and analysis of potentially competing ocean uses and values.
- Working with the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance offsite link and other partners to complete a Synthesis of the Science report offsite link to improve understanding of existing science and data gaps related to offshore wind energy.
- Implementing projects with BOEM and DOE supported by state, regional, private, and academic collaborators, with data provided by offshore wind industry partners, to mitigate offshore wind turbine interference to high-frequency radar measuring ocean surface currents and waves.
NOAA staff and stakeholders participate in a BOEM Offshore Wind Task Force meeting in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. NOAA scientists presented on spatial modeling. (NOAA)