EXCLUSIVE: A New Jersey congressman blasted Orsted, a green energy giant, on Friday after the company refused to attend its hearing on the environmental impact of offshore wind power.
Rep. Jeff Van Drew, RN.J., noted that Orsted, a Denmark-based energy company valued at more than $240 billion, in its ongoing review of offshore wind’s impact on wildlife, specifically endangered whale species, was absent, although he has an office in his district. The Company has interests in several offshore wind projects along the east coast, including a 2,200 megawatt development along the coast of the Van Drew district.
The congressman turned his ire on the company shortly after hosting a field hearing with stakeholders and experts in Wildwood, New Jersey, on Thursday. Orsted officials declined an invitation to testify at the event.
“I invited Orsted to testify at the hearing with weeks’ notice. They have an office in my district but declined the opportunity to appear before our panel of experts,” Van Drew told Fox News Digital.
BIDEN ADMIN SCIENTIST RAISED ALERT ABOUT OFFSHORE WIND DAMAGE OF WHALES MONTHS AGO
Rep. Jeff Van Drew, RN.J., at the Capitol in 2019. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, file)
“Orsted has claimed they had a ‘full, public process’ but I know my district and it would be very difficult to find someone from our community for our stakeholders who felt they had been involved in that process .
“So it’s no surprise that they refused to show up because they don’t have the answers that we’re asking for,” Van Drew added. “The federal government is allowing these offshore wind companies to bypass in-depth analysis of the long-term impacts of offshore wind farms in order to enforce that government’s Green New Deal policy.
DOZENS OF NJ MAYORS DEMAND IMMEDIATE MORATORIUM ON OFFSHORE WINDS AFTER RECENT WALT DEATH
“It’s becoming increasingly clear [Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)] And [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)] are in collusion with these companies, and they won’t be able to hide forever.”
Van Drew organized the hearing — also attended by Reps Chris Smith, RN.J., Andy Harris, R-Md., and Scott Perry, R-Pa. — in response to a recent unprecedented spike in whale deaths on the east coast . According to federal data, 14 humpback whales and six right whales from the North Atlantic have been found dead this year alone, with most stranded in New Jersey and Virginia.
The Block Island wind farm is pictured April 16, 2021 off the coast of New York. (Mark Harrington/Newsday RM via Getty Images)
In the wake of the deaths, Van Drew, Smith, dozens of local officials and several environmental groups have called on the federal government to enact a moratorium on offshore wind development, arguing that relevant agencies such as NOAA and BOEM must first conduct a broader review of environmental impacts before massive ones Turbine construction projects progressed.
INCREASE IN DEAD WHALES ON THE EAST COAST SPARKS AN INTENSE DEBATE AMONG ENVIRONMENTALISTS ABOUT OFFSHORE WINDS
“All of us up here believe that serious, aggressive and independent analysis of the ocean-changing impact of these projects is so outrageous,” Smith said at Thursday’s hearing. “The permitting process for wind farms has been shabby at best, leaving numerous serious questions unanswered and unanswered about the extraordinarily damaging environmental impact on marine life.”
But federal officials, clean energy advocacy groups and Orsted have dismissed the criticism, saying there is no evidence that wind farm construction is contributing to the rising number of whale deaths. In a press conference earlier this year, NOAA and BOEM officials stressed that an “unusual fatality event” had been declared for humpback and right whales years ago.
A beached humpback whale in Long Island, NY, where it was found dead last month. (AP Photo/Seth Little)
However, the US is on track for 67 dead humpback whales and 29 this year dead right whales, federal data showed. The previous record for humpback whale deaths was set in 2017 when 34 deaths were discovered and the highest number of right whale deaths, 31, was reported in the same year.
“Orsted does not believe that a moratorium on offshore wind energy development is warranted and our company is committed to helping New Jersey prepare for its clean energy future through the responsible development of a local and sustainable offshore wind industry,” according to Maddy Urbish, the company’s New Jersey-based head of government affairs and policy, Fox News Digital said in a statement.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Urbish added that the federal government has conducted a thorough review of Ocean Wind 1, part of the company’s wind project off the coast of Atlantic City. She said BOEM’s 1,408-page draft environmental analysis of the project includes 1,200 cited references from sources including the US Coast Guard, US Navy and local county and peer-reviewed experts, while more than 100 stakeholders were consulted on the procedures .
“We have been transparent about our plans and have continued to be diligent in educating the public, local communities, commercial fisheries representatives and stakeholders throughout the development of the project,” she continued. “We will continue to answer questions and provide information on our proposed projects as they go through the federal and state review process.”
Source : www.foxnews.com