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Responsible Offshore Development Alliance: Fishermen Ignored In Rush to Expand Offshore Wind

By News, Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date Published: March 29, 2021

 

Washington, D.C. — Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA), a broad membership-based coalition of fishing industry associations and fishing companies, today announced its response to the Biden Administration’s new offshore wind power expansion.

Today’s interagency announcement again advanced cliched language about “unlocking potential” and committed billions of taxpayer dollars to capital loans, subsidies, and technological research for just one strategy to address climate change that has many known environmental and societal impacts. In doing so, it holds no fidelity to President Biden’s January 27th Memorandum on restoring trust in the government through scientific integrity and evidence-based policymaking. The Biden administration, after committing to inclusivity and complaining about the lack of transparency from the previous administration, introduced a process that includes few specifics to address the well-documented, serious environmental and socioeconomic concerns of offshore wind and does not take into account the needs of the communities involved.

Offshore wind energy development poses an enormous risk to the marine environment and sustainable U.S. seafood production. The Biden Administration’s disappointing fervor over its advancement continues an ineffective approach toward addressing climate change begun by previous administrations without demonstrating any willingness to include fisheries, ecosystem science, or our coastal communities in climate solutions.

The Administration promised over $4 billion for offshore wind development, with a paltry $1 million to help Northeast coastal communities “improve understanding of offshore renewable energy” through NOAA’s Sea Grant program. Funding for science to truly understand the ecological and economic impacts of offshore wind is something all coastal communities desperately need, but a one-time, $1 million grant in only one region of the country is an ineffective attempt to pay lip service to the coastal communities that will experience significant impacts from the industrialization of their shorelines for decades to come. This concession ignores the needs and economic realities of fishing communities, especially those outside of the Northeast, leaving them without a seat at the table where decisions about our exclusive economic zone are being made. As fisheries experts have long understood, fishermen’s knowledge is a key contributor to effective science-based management of ocean resources and ecosystems and should be utilized as an asset, not a hurdle to marginalize.

Fisheries resources, jobs, seafood, and NOAA’s scientific mandate hang in the balance. The commercial seafood sector provides over $46 billion in annual sales, income, and value added to the New England and the Mid-Atlantic economy (data calculated by National Marine Fisheries Service), to which poorly planned offshore industrialization imposes severe risk. Offshore wind also directly interferes with the National Marine Fisheries Service’s statutory mandate to assess and manage fish stocks and marine mammals. Key questions remain with regard to maritime safety, coastal environmental justice populations (the majority of which are employed in the fishing sector in many states), and long-term community resiliency once the oft-touted wind construction jobs come and go—if they come in the U.S. at all. These topics are not new, and for the Administration to completely ignore them in such an ambitious, if unrealistic, announcement as the one today is both irresponsible and indefensible.

RODA has worked with members of this Administration in the past, and has Memorandums of Understanding with NMFS and BOEM that explicitly recognize the need for better coordination with fishing communities and fisheries science experts. We have provided specific actionable requests with no response. In fact, the Administration has barely reached out to fishing communities or science experts at all, although they’ve had near-constant contact with foreign wind developers. We had hoped the goodwill we’ve shown would carry through to provide greater context, utility, and recognition as they push forward these policies. 

Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said today, “At the center of everything we do will be science, data, transparency and open coordination and collaboration with partners in states, industry, and labor. I hope you see we’re going to coordinate early and often.” Unfortunately, it seems this Administration does not include fishing experts among their chosen collaborators. We are disappointed in today’s announcement and hope that President Biden and his Cabinet will prioritize policies that are co-developed with fishermen and other coastal industry leaders in the future. 

If you’d like to join the conversation and share your specific requests with the administration, you can sign RODA’s petition today.

 

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About Responsible Offshore Development Alliance

Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) is a broad membership-based coalition of fishing industry associations and fishing companies — across the United States — committed to improving the compatibility of new offshore development with their businesses. The alliance works to directly collaborate with relevant regulatory agencies, scientists, and others to coordinate science and policy approaches to managing development of the Outer Continental Shelf in a way that minimizes conflicts with existing traditional and historical fishing.

 

Connect with RODA on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. 

 

Contact:

Haley Steinhauser

Haley@espadvisor.com

+1(562)991-3170

March 29, 2021
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The American Albacore Fishing Association & Responsible Offshore Development Alliance Respond to Seaspiracy

By News, Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date Published: March 25, 2021

 

Washington, D.C. — The American Albacore Fishing Association (AAFA), a non-profit marketing organization representing commercial pole & line, troll fishing vessels, and the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA), a broad membership-based coalition of fishing industry associations and fishing companies, announce today their response to the Netflix film, Seaspiracy.

“U.S. fishermen have been sustainably harvesting our fisheries resources for generations,” says Tim Thomas, AAFA board president and life-long fisherman out of Garibaldi, Oregon. “We work within the robust national standards of the Magnuson Stevens Act, which requires by law that overfishing must end immediately if it occurs and has accountability measures to ensure bycatch is avoided. Commercial fishermen rely on a healthy ocean for their livelihoods and want to see their sons, daughters, and grandchildren fishing in the future.”

AAFA represents a traditional, multi-generational fishery of U.S. fishermen harvesting albacore tuna with the pole & line and troll methods. These American small businesses catch fish one at a time using one of the most sustainable, environmentally conscious tuna harvest methods in the world that has full traceability back to the harvest vessel. Albacore tuna, like 93 percent of U.S. fishery stocks, is not subject to overfishing.

In 2018 alone, U.S. fishermen added $5.6 billion to the economy and supported over a million jobs. IUU fishing harms responsible U.S. fishermen and the communities they support by undercutting their products with cheaper seafood from abroad. There are many ways governments, fishermen, and the public can work globally to stop illegal fishing, but removing seafood from diets is not the solution – for the environment or for public health. The recently published 2020 – 2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans found that almost 90 percent of Americans consume less than the recommended amount of seafood.

“American seafood provides one of the most sustainable sources of animal protein in the world, supports healthy coastal communities, and delivers critical nutrition to a growing global population,” says Annie Hawkins, Executive Director of RODA.
“Advocating that people stop eating seafood because criminals exploit the system is like advocating to ban the internet because criminals use it as a black market. We need to significantly grow our global effort to stop illegal fishing, but we can’t punish the U.S. fishing industry for criminal or poorly regulated industries abroad.”

U.S. fishermen are the backbone of our coastal economies. Supporting the American seafood industry ensures strong communities, healthy ecosystems, and reliable food security for generations to come. To fight illegal fishing, keep enjoying responsibly harvested American seafood. To join AAFA and RODA in this conversation, share your thoughts across social media
using the hashtag #ProtectUSFishermen.

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About American Albacore Fishing Association:
The American Albacore Fishing Association (AAFA) is a non-profit organization representing commercial pole & line, and troll vessels. AAFA seeks to ensure responsible fishery management practices and the participation of vital fishing communities. It supports education regarding responsible fishing methods and promotes the health benefits of tuna consumption along with environmental benefits of sustainable fishery practices. AAFA strives to ensure the economic viability of pole & line troll fisheries now and into the future.

Connect with AAFA on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

About Responsible Offshore Development Alliance:
Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) is a broad membership-based coalition of fishing industry associations and fishing companies — across the United States — committed to improving the compatibility of new offshore development with their businesses. The alliance works to directly collaborate with relevant regulatory agencies (e.g., National Marine Fisheries Service, Bureau of Ocean Energy management, U.S. Coast Guard, fishery management councils, and state agencies), scientists, and others to coordinate science and policy approaches to managing development of the Outer Continental Shelf in a way that minimizes conflicts with existing traditional and historical fishing.

Connect with RODA on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Contact:
Haley Steinhauser
Haley@espadvisor.com
+1(562)991-3170

March 25, 2021
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RODA Statement on Recent developments in Southern New England Offshore Wind

By News, Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date Published: March 3, 2021

 

Washington, DC — Last week, Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) submitted comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the South Fork Wind Farm project in federal waters off New England and Long Island. In 65 pages, addressed to new Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) director Amanda Lefton, RODA detailed that the DEIS was issued “at a time of significant confusion and change in the U.S. approach to offshore wind energy (OSW) planning,” pointed out numerous analytical, factual, and typographical errors, and urged Lefton to “improve the broken federal OSW process before consideration of additional projects or lease announcements.”

Our letter urged the Biden Administration to create a national strategy that prioritizes food security, environmental protection, and participatory governance, along with a comprehensive energy plan that provides transparency regarding energy production, costs, and regional grid and transmission considerations for offshore wind. If such a plan is not adopted before project approval, basic mitigation measures should be enacted at a minimum. These include:

  • Establish safe transit areas through the 1400 square mile New England lease areas;
  • Ensure better federal environmental review analysis and clear identification of scientific unknowns;
  • Monitor fisheries impacts for the life of projects and utilize adaptive management;
  • Resolve impacts to National Marine Fisheries Service stock assessment surveys;
  • Prohibit turbines in sensitive habitat including spawning areas and high-value fishing grounds;
  • Improve communications with fishermen in culturally appropriate formats;
  • Perform “micrositing” of turbines and cables with fishermen who know the ecosystem;
  • Establish science-based, inclusive, and predictable plans for compensatory mitigation of impacts to fishing communities;
  • Standardize processes for gear loss claims;
  • Address interference from turbines to marine radar;
  • Require deicing technology and practices;
  • Ensure that any economic benefits of offshore wind accrue to the U.S.—not at some undetermined point in the future, but now.

To be clear, none of these requests are new—nor hardly radical. They have simply been ignored again, and again, and again in a political push/pull between multinational energy companies and the U.S. government, leaving world-famous seafood, and the communities founded around its harvest, off the table.

It would appear that fishing communities are the only ones screaming into a void while public resources are sold to the highest bidder, as BOEM has reversed its decision to terminate a project after receiving a single letter from Vineyard Wind. A Federal Register notice posted this morning indicates that BOEM is resuming the review of the Construction and Operations Plan for the Vineyard Wind project as the developer “has indicated that its proposed COP is ‘a decision pending before BOEM,’” in a private communication dated January 22, 2021- a far cry from “public” engagement. This is irreconcilable with the plain language of BOEM’s announcement terminating the project’s review last December. 

BOEM’s duty as a federal agency is to provide a transparent, structured, legal, and public process for making decisions about public lands and resources that affect all Americans—not to allow one tentacle to wag the octopus. Adding to the confusion, the Biden Administration’s revocation of the “one federal decision” process for infrastructure projects such as these means the public has no information as to how decisions will be made. RODA commented at length on the defective Vineyard Wind process in our comments regarding the South Fork DEIS, and now again urge BOEM to at least hold public hearings explaining to the public how a private company can resume a project terminated by the federal government without further inquiry. 

Unlike offshore wind advocates who lack an intricate understanding of our marine ecosystems, the late stages of the environmental review projects do not leave many commercial fishing communities with optimism, excitement, or hope for their existence. The process has been one-sided, without leadership, and riddled with lost opportunities for co-planning and mitigation. 

BOEM is legally required to prevent unreasonable interference to fishing operations from offshore wind development. Recent experience has shown us that muddling through matters as important as energy security, food production, and environmental effects of large-scale industrialization without a clear path or understanding of unintended consequences is a recipe for disaster. Will we choose to do better?

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About Responsible Offshore Development Alliance:

Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) is a broad membership-based coalition of fishing industry associations and fishing companies — across the United States — committed to improving the compatibility of new offshore development with their businesses. The alliance works to directly collaborate with relevant regulatory agencies (e.g., National Marine Fisheries Service, Bureau of Ocean Energy management, U.S. Coast Guard, fishery management councils, and state agencies), offshore developers, scientists, and others to coordinate science and policy approaches to managing development of the Outer Continental Shelf in a way that minimizes conflicts with existing traditional and historical fishing.

March 3, 2021
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SAVING SEAFOOD: RODA Statement on Considerations For The Biden Administration From The Fishing Industry and Coastal Communities

By News, Press Releases

January 29, 2021 — The following was released by the Responsible Offshore Development Alliance:

The United States commercial fishing industry is united around the common goals of protecting our traditional fishing communities, maintaining domestic food security, and leading with evidence-based decision making during an era of rapidly changing ocean use. We are encouraged by the new Administration’s commitment to inclusivity and environmental science. We look forward to improving partnerships between lawmakers, policymakers, and fisheries experts to protect and promote this low-environmental impact protein source, which leads the world in sustainability through the rigorous fisheries management and conservation requirements of the Magnuson Stevens Act.

It is imperative that our elected officials support and adopt policies to minimize and mitigate the effects of climate change; the strategies to do so must equally address the pressing issues of food production, ecosystem health, and preserving cultural heritage. As evidenced by his Agency nominations and recent Executive Order on “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad,” we are encouraged that the President is taking a measured approach. We applaud leadership and processes that underscore the value of science-based collaboration with members of small communities who are most impacted by natural resource management decisions.

Offshore Renewable Energy Development

The Administration has made clear its commitment to address climate change, which is a matter of critical importance to seafood harvesters adapting to the effects of ecosystem changes every day. The rapid advancement of large offshore wind energy facilities to meet climate goals places our nation at the dawn of a new era of ocean industrialization. While mitigating carbon emissions is urgent and necessary, so is protecting and prioritizing domestic sourcing of sustainable, affordable, and healthy protein. This necessitates evaluating the most efficient means of reducing atmospheric carbon while minimizing impacts to biodiversity and the economy.

Fishing communities stand ready and willing to incorporate their unique expertise in the country’s transition to renewable energy but there must be meaningful ways for them to do so. Three key topics must be addressed to ensure responsible planning for the unprecedented demands that are anticipated to be placed on our oceans.

1. Improving regional research efforts and scientific understanding of offshore infrastructure projects

Development of the Outer Continental Shelf should only be done in a purposeful planned manner utilizing the best available science. Our scientific understanding of impacts from offshore wind energy development is improving, but there is far more unknown about how development will alter the physical, biological, economic and social dimensions of the marine environment.

Evidence-based planning is necessary to understand and minimize impacts, and currently that does not exist for the proposed scale of development to proceed responsibly. For commercial fishermen, it is extremely worrisome to see the push for a new industry that jeopardizes a sustainable and historic one without rigorous scientific due diligence. Such diligence must apply to transparent information about the environmental and economic effects associated with the entire offshore renewable energy supply chain, from mining rare earth minerals for battery components to turbine production to maritime traffic to decommissioning.

Currently, there is no balancing of priorities in offshore renewable energy permitting decisions. Promises to achieve production targets for offshore wind energy based solely on climate goals will significantly impact other public needs such as food production, tourism, and national security. Such targets, if adopted, must be accompanied by a comprehensive roadmap for evaluating tradeoffs and should not be pursued before the creation of balanced multi-use ocean plans. These must include funding for environmental research and compensatory mitigation for impacted sectors.

2. Enhanced interstate coordination and a clear delineation of authorities within federal agencies

Some of the biggest challenges around offshore renewable energy development are due to a lack of consistency in the leasing and planning processes, nonexistent or inconsistent engagement opportunities, and poor integration between planning and permitting authorities.

Regional issues associated with environmental and fisheries impacts require appropriate federal oversight. The current approach results in widespread duplication of efforts, inconsistency and inequity, misplaced interstate competition, and overall unpredictability. To help address the lack of coordination of regional research, RODA co-founded the Responsible Offshore Science Alliance with federal and state entities, offshore wind energy developers, and expert fisheries scientists to serve as a trusted regional coordinating entity. The Administration should reward the collaboration on this innovative public-private partnership and utilize it as a resource for improved coordination.

Responsibilities for the various federal agencies involved is often unclear. A clarification of the roles for these entities is urgently needed and regulatory authority should be returned to agencies with most expertise in the relevant aspects of environmental review.

We look forward to an incoming Commerce Secretary who can bring her expertise and knowledge of coordinating numerous federal, state and local agencies, as well as community members and regional partners together through her experience with the Block Island Wind Farm. As governor, Ms. Raimondo witnessed first hand the time and dedication required for effective collaboration and the complex links of offshore wind energy with the U.S. economy.

3. Facilitation of industry to industry cooperation

As users who will inevitably share the ocean space, regulations, and potential workforce, it is paramount that industry to industry cooperation improves between offshore wind energy development and fishing. Currently this is very difficult to achieve and would benefit from regulatory incentives or direct federal involvement.

RODA has worked to bring industries together through its Joint Industry Task Force and fishing industry leaders are committed to direct engagement when assured those efforts can bear fruit. Small collaborative projects and communication have added value to the process, but not enough resources have been committed to truly catalyze the industries working together in a meaningful way. Absent resources and in a regulatory atmosphere that strongly favors one party, progress is difficult. To be effective, support must be directed to fisheries-driven efforts, not just wind-organized ones. Similarly, some wind developers have expended far more effort than others to work with affected communities in good faith. Incentives to do so must be greatly expanded.

“30×30”

The Presidential Memorandum on scientific integrity must extend to implementation of science-based recommendations for conservation and environmental protection. We are encouraged by the Administration’s commitment to collect input from stakeholders in the “30×30” provisions included in the Executive Order on climate change, which implements a goal of conserving at least 30% of U.S. waters by 2030. We echo the concern expressed by fishing communities and scientists across the country that arbitrary closures, or targets for the total area of closures, based on political negotiations rather than science could have greater negative impacts to ocean conservation than no closures at all.

For conservation measures to be beneficial, they must be carefully designed for specific outcomes such as enhancing ecosystem production, protecting sensitive habitat, or preserving fish spawning activity. The public and transparent fishery management council process is the appropriate way to ensure the best available science determines such design.  We must also be mindful that for a vast majority of Americans, the only access they have to the marine resources in U.S. oceans is a direct result of the U.S. fishing industry.  The Executive Order clearly states environmental and economic justice are important considerations in developing programs and policies. Reducing our abilities to provide U.S. seafood to disadvantaged communities would not further environmental and economic justice.

Support for the Buy American Initiative

The Biden Administration should champion the U.S. commercial fishing industry, which complies with a multitude of regulations to provide renewable protein to Americans across the country. U.S. fisheries are among the most sustainable around the world and constitute one of the lowest-carbon methods of food production. Too often we hear public misconceptions that wild harvest fisheries are on the verge of extinction or utilize destructive practices, but that is not true for U.S. based fisheries. Domestic fisheries are the most strictly regulated in the world and have rebounded extraordinarily from overfishing decades ago; failing to recognize their success only pushes consumers toward seafood from other markets with much looser environmental oversight. The coastal communities across the nation that support our fishing heritage must be protected and celebrated.

In light of the Covid-19 pandemic and staggering unemployment rates, efforts to promote jobs should be maximized across all maritime sectors and ensure that any new coastal uses benefit the U.S. economy and Americans. RODA calls on the Biden administration to work with fishing companies and crews, offshore wind supply chains, unions, and workforce development programs to create robust mechanisms that create and maintain jobs across all maritime trades.

Complementary to this, offshore wind energy development should be the poster industry for the President’s “Buy American” initiative. Current infrastructure in the U.S. does not support the manufacturing or installation of offshore wind turbine components and thus energy development companies are poised to purchase from foreign countries. For example, GE Renewable Energy, a main supplier of wind turbines and turbine parts, recently opened a new offshore wind and development center in China. The Administration should support American labor by requiring turbines, monopiles and blades be manufactured here in the U.S., ensuring that they meet our world-class environmental standards.

As small business owners reliant upon a healthy U.S. environment, our members look forward to working with the President’s appointments for the Secretaries of Commerce, Interior, and Labor. Their experience working with small communities, including coastal and fishing communities, will prove vital as we tackle some of the biggest issues facing our nation. We also look forward to working with the entire Administration on protecting and promoting sustainable U.S. seafood. RODA is committed to helping our members stay on the water and will continue to advocate for protecting the important heritage of the fishing industry and coastal communities across the country.

January 29, 2021
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