As communities across the globe continue to face extreme heat, intense storms and other extreme weather, it is clear that there is no time to waste in making serious and enduring investments to combat the climate crisis.
Thanks to President Joe Biden’s Investing in America agenda, we are tackling climate change head-on while sparking job growth and ensuring that every community shares in the economic opportunities of this new era. Since day one, our administration has been laser-focused on making what many once thought impossible — a thriving and sustainable domestic offshore wind industry — a reality.
Our goals are ambitious: achieve 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030 and deploy 15 gigawatts of floating wind capacity by 2035 — with good-paying jobs for local communities at the heart of that development. In the past few weeks, our work in Maryland has shown the nation how we’re going to get there.
This month, we announced the approval of the 10th offshore wind project under our watch — the Maryland Offshore Wind Project. This project is the first located off the state’s shore and has the potential to generate 2 gigawatts of clean, reliable renewable energy for the Delmarva Peninsula, powering up to 770,000 homes. The development and construction phases of the project are estimated to support up to an estimated 2,679 jobs annually over seven years.
This followed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) successful wind energy auction for two lease areas offshore from the states of Maryland, Delaware and Virginia in August. The sale — the first in the region in a decade — resulted in $92.65 million in winning bids. This progress, along with the memorandum of understanding that BOEM signed with Governor Wes Moore in June, will continue to support Maryland in its clean energy goals.
When the two of us came to the Department of the Interior, there were zero approved offshore wind projects in federal waters. Now, once complete, these 10 offshore wind projects will produce more than 15 gigawatts of clean, renewable energy — enough to power more than 5 million homes.
But we’re not done! From California to the Gulf of Mexico, we’ve held first-ever lease sales that will bring the clean energy economy to every coast. We’re exploring the latest technology in places like Oregon and Maine where floating offshore wind is a viable and exciting opportunity that will bring clean energy to more communities. And we are requiring leaseholders to incorporate project labor agreements into their planning that will benefit workers throughout every phase of the project. This includes investments in workforce training and supply chain development programs to ensure the health and longevity of local economies.
Over the next five years, the department will hold up to 12 offshore wind energy lease sales — with two more expected in 2024. We also modernized and streamlined our offshore renewable energy development regulations, which will give developers and communities predictability and transparency as they plan for future projects. All of this means more momentum for a thriving, sustainable future that benefits everyone.
Of course, nothing as big and important as offshore wind happens without collaboration. All along our coasts, the Department of the Interior has worked with states, tribes, local communities, federal and community partners, ocean users and industry to ensure we make thoughtful and informed decisions that protect environmental and cultural resources and accommodate multiple uses in a very busy ocean. As part of this holistic effort, we’re also conducting technical and environmental studies to help us better understand offshore wind’s potential effects on protected species, tribal cultural landscapes, fishing sectors and transmission system integration. Because the truth is, if we are going to build this emerging industry the right way, we must center the communities most impacted — which so often are the ones who have been historically left behind.
The clean energy transition has so much potential — for our climate and for the health and resilience of our nation. Working with states like Maryland, this vision is becoming a reality. As we build a thriving offshore wind industry with partners at the table, we are creating not just a better, cleaner and more sustainable future, but a future where our children, our grandchildren, and their children can grow and thrive together.
Deb Haaland is the U.S. secretary of the interior. Elizabeth Klein is director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.