Whale deaths prompt call to halt offshore wind

Since December, 38 whales, dolphins and porpoises have died, according to figures by the Marine Mammal Stranding Center.

However, according to the data from the center, the level of deaths is by no means worse than at many other periods from which numbers have been collected.

And while some of the causes of death have not yet been identified and many are awaiting final results, preliminary findings suggest that many of those already analysed died from illnesses such as parasitic infestation or pulmonary issues. Just three have so far been confirmed as suffering from injuries likely to be consistent with vessel trauma or net entanglement.

Under Democrat governor Phil Murphy, the state of New Jersey has set a target of generating 11GW of offshore wind electricity by 2040, which is enough to power 3.2 million households. 

In March, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) approved the state’s third solicitation for offshore wind capacity, with the deadline for bids set for June 23.

Pushing the moratorium, Republican senator Declan O’Scanlon said: “While the governor has stated that ‘there’s no evidence these activities are causing these whale and dolphin deaths’, he omits that he, and we, simply have no idea what’s causing these tragic deaths. We very well might find evidence that offshore wind activities are contributing to this tragedy. Until we know, we should err on the side of caution.”

Winners of the second solicitation Ocean Wind and Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind, a 50:50 joint venture between EDF and Shell New Energies US, committed $10,000 per megawatt of project size awarded capacity to fund regional research and monitoring to assess the impacts of offshore wind on the state’s natural resources. 

The NJBPU says it has recommended any projects in the third solicitation should also contribute funds for this research.