Washington, D.C. —Today, the Department of the Interior announced that it would hold an offshore wind energy lease sale in the Central Atlantic on August 14th that could generate up to 6.3 gigawatts of clean, renewable energy equivalent to powering 2.2 million homes. In response to this important step by the Biden-Harris Administration to invest in the nation’s clean energy future the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), Maryland LCV, and Virginia LCV released the following statements:

“Offshore wind plays a vital role in creating good-paying union jobs building clean, reliable energy for millions across the country,”  said Sara Chieffo, LCV Vice President of Government Affairs. “Today’s announcement is yet another step in President Biden’s Affordable Clean Energy Plan that’s delivering the climate action he promised.”

“Today’s announcement is a major step toward Maryland reaching our state’s goal of 8.5 GW of offshore wind energy,” said Kim Coble, Executive Director of Maryland LCV. “Our clean energy future provides good-paying union jobs and economic opportunities across the state. Additionally, by reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and the associated air pollution, we anticipate health savings in the hundreds of millions of dollars. We also believe there is even greater potential for expansion in the Central Atlantic and look forward to continuing to work with federal and state agencies to invest in our state’s economic and environmental benefits.”

“Further offshore wind deployment off our coast means more good-paying jobs in Virginia, more investment in local communities, and more clean energy powering our daily lives – all of which results in a healthy economy and a healthy environment,” said Lee Francis, Deputy Director, Virginia League of Conservation Voters. “With the nation’s largest offshore wind project currently in development off our coast, and already creating good-paying jobs here in the Commonwealth, Virginia’s solidified its place as an offshore wind leader on the East Coast. This lease sale will allow us to go even further as we continue working toward 100 percent clean energy.” 

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Since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, the Department has approved the nation’s first eight commercial-scale offshore wind energy projects in federal waters. BOEM has held four offshore wind lease sales, including offshore New York, New Jersey, and the Carolinas, and the first-ever sales offshore the Pacific and Gulf of Mexico coasts. The Department recently announced a schedule of up to 12 additional lease sales through 2028.