(Washington, DC) — The Environmental Law Institute has published a study which shows that alternative energy sources are included in the ocean resource strategy plans of coastal states. ELI, working with the Commonwealth of Virginia, found that existing laws, with some modifications and adaptations from other states, could help Virginia prepare for offshore wind energy and influence anticipated federal oil and gas leasing in federal waters off the mid-Atlantic seaboard.
In June 2009, the Governors of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia signed an accord that led to the establishment of a Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean to develop and implement coordinated and shared activities. The agreement stresses the need for states to work together and assesses the potential impacts of energy development on coastal and ocean resources on a multi-state and regional basis. ELI has co-sponsored and contributed to several of the interstate conferences on the science and policy behind a Mid-Atlantic regional collaboration for ocean and coastal governance, supporting the development and implementation of the new accord. “Ocean governance is a key issue for the Mid-Atlantic States as they examine development of a very significant offshore wind power resource,“ said ELI Senior Attorney James McElfish.
ELI’s work with Virginia’s Coastal Zone Management Program to assess the law and policy framework to deal with various forms of offshore energy development included an analysis of potential proposals for wind and wave energy, liquefied natural gas transport, and oil and gas drilling on the outer continental shelf. “We found that Virginia’s laws and policies could deal with many of the anticipated environmental impacts from the proposed offshore energy development,” says McElfish. “But planning ahead and identifying transmission corridors and areas of conservation sensitivity will be critical.” The new study, Virginia Offshore Energy Development Law and Policy Review, offers specific recommendations for legislative, administrative, and policy improvements.
ELI is now working with the state of Maryland, which is evaluating its preparedness to support more renewable energy offshore. “ELI’s work on ocean and coastal policy is helping to identify the obstacles and opportunities to accommodate the new and evolving demands on our marine waters, including energy development, while protecting the ocean ecosystems on which we so heavily rely,“ says ELI Attorney Adam Schempp, who contributed to a new ELI handbook on the implementation of ocean and coastal ecosystem-based management, Ocean and Coastal Ecosystem-Based Management: Implementation Handbook, released in July.