The Department of the Interior says the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) has completed its review of design and installation reports for the South Fork Wind project, clearing the way for the start of turbine construction offshore Rhode Island and New York.
“[This] announcement is a significant milestone for the Biden-Harris administration and the department’s progress in offshore wind development on the outer continental shelf,” says BSEE Director Kevin Sligh. “The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement has the important responsibility of reviewing renewable energy projects and is committed to ensuring they will be built and operated in a safe and environmentally sustainable manner.”
With BSEE’s completion of the 60-day review of the project’s facility design report and fabrication and installation report, South Fork Wind will begin constructing and installing offshore wind turbines on the outer continental shelf. The project, which was approved by Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) in November 2021, will directly support approximately 165 jobs over the two-year construction period and approximately 10 long-term jobs during the operations and maintenance period.
The project will also support hundreds of jobs in the supply chain and service industries, producing economic benefits from the clean energy transition for onshore communities.
