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On the largely undeveloped Delmarva Peninsula – which is bordered by the Chesapeake Bay to the west, the Atlantic Ocean to the east and includes parts of Delaware, Maryland and VIRGINIA – Local lawmakers are getting ready to take on a major international wind energy company in an effort to save their vital commercial fishing industry.
Worcester County Commissioners in Maryland on Tuesday approved a proposal through eminent domain to acquire two properties in West Ocean City Harbor that US Wind plans to develop as an operations and maintenance facility Because it builds a wind farm off the coast of Ocean City, Maryland. , This action was taken in an effort to protect the county’s historic commercial and sport fishing industries.
Commissioners passed the motion because US Wind, a subsidiary of Italian-based Renexia S.p.A., plans to build a 353-foot-long and 30-foot-wide concrete pier at the port to serve vessels that would be used to build the proposed wind farm. Consisting of 118 turbines at least 15 miles off the coast of Ocean City. The company plans to install a 383-feet bulkhead along the pier.
The two properties the county plans to acquire are currently used by Southern Connection Seafood and Martin Fish Company, the only two commercial seafood wholesalers in the area where Waterman unloads and sells its catches. Can.
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Offshore wind turbine. US Wind is proposing to build a wind farm consisting of 118 turbines off the Maryland coast. (Mark Harrington/Newsday RM via Getty Images/Getty Images)
The county’s plans for the two properties include developing long-term leases with the current owners, allowing them to continue to meet the needs of the public. commercial fishing industryAccording to the resolution that was passed.
“The commercial fishing industry is an integral and essential part of the economy of Worcester County,” the proposal states, adding that it, along with the sport fishing industry, supports commercial marine in and around the West Ocean City Harbor. resting on.
The proposal also states that the existence of the commercial fishing industry in the port is directly tied to federal support in maintaining Ocean City Inlet, which frequently fills with sand, and to the U.S. military’s ability to maintain its navigability. It needs to be excavated by engineers.
The commissioners stated in the proposal that without access to the Atlantic Ocean, the commercial and sport fishing industries “would not exist in any meaningful way.”
US offshore wind farms raise concerns in fishing industry
Southern Connection Seafood in the West Ocean City Harbor is one of two wholesalers where watermen can offload and sell their catch in West Ocean City, MD. (Google Maps/Google Maps)
Therefore, the Commissioners emphasized the importance of commercial fishing operations in the West Ocean City Harbor.
“None of our actions today have been taken lightly,” said Ted Elder, chairman of the Worcester County Board of Commissioners. “Over the past year or so, we have spoken to Governor Moore at every opportunity, to state legislators, to the Maryland Public Service Commission, to Sussex County, where the wind turbine cables will come to shore, and to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), have warned that Worcester County’s commercial and sport fishing industries will be destroyed if US Wind is allowed to close the fish houses. They have ignored us.”
The commercial fishing fleet is based in West Ocean City, and the annual market value of its catch exceeds $3.7 million.
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Martin Fish Company in the West Ocean City Harbor is one of only two wholesalers in West Ocean City, MD, where fishermen can stock up and sell their catch. (Google Maps)
Martin Fish Company also has an operation that extracts blood from horseshoe crabs, which is used in vaccine testing and by biotech industries in Maryland and around the world. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the blue blood of horseshoe crabs is worth about $15,000 per quarter.
However, also important to the region is the White Marlin Open, the largest billfish tournament in the world. Last year, the White Marlin Open created 130 jobs, attracted 3,500 fishermen and gave away $10.5 million in prize money.
While the tournament is not based at the West Ocean City Harbor, all boats entering the tournament must navigate through the inlet, which has been re-dredged due to federal funding given to the commercial fishing industry.
US Wind plans to build a pier for an operations and maintenance facility in West Ocean City, MD. (Google Maps)
Weston Young, chief administrative officer of Worcester County, said, “If ever there was a worthy use of eminent domain, this is it.” “There is support for the actions being taken today by the overwhelming majority of Worcester County Commissioners, Ocean City Mayor and Council, and area stakeholders, as well as residents, businesses and property owners who are against the american wind Destroying our commercial port and resort viewshed.”
US Wind responded to the action by county commissioners on Tuesday.
Nancy Sopko, vice president of external affairs for US Wind, told Fox Business, “Worcester County’s latest efforts will block much-needed upgrades to the West Ocean City Harbor and the economic benefits that would result from construction of a new facility in the area.” “US Wind, the State of Maryland, local fishermen and other key stakeholders are working on a Memorandum of Understanding to establish and fund programs to mitigate and mitigate impacts. We will continue to operate existing offloading and ice services without any disruption to Are also planning to change.
“US Wind’s commitment to building energy projects that help meet the region’s growing demand remains unchanged,” Sopko said. “If the County continues these misguided efforts we are prepared to explore every legal option at our disposal.”
US Wind said in a brochure on the project that two property owners in the West Ocean City commercial port have contacted them about the possible sale of their properties, indicating that the wind giant has not yet purchased the properties.
The commissioner’s decision to acquire the two properties comes amid another ongoing battle between local officials, Pawan energy provider And BOEM.
Green Building Law Update reported in November that several other groups, including Ocean City and Worcester County Towns, the Coastal Association of Realtors of Maryland, the Save Right Whales Association, the Watermen’s Association of Worcester County and White Marlin Open Inc., had filed a lawsuit. Lawsuit against the US Department of the Interior and BOEM.
Complaint filed That’s after BOEM released the final environmental impact statement for US Wind’s plan to build more than 100 wind turbines about 10 miles from the coast.
Ocean City has repeatedly expressed opposition to the wind farm because of the potential for it to have a negative impact on the offshore view, which was acknowledged in the report.
Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan told Fox News Digital last year that he and other city officials are not opposed to wind energy, but would like to see turbines relocated away from the coast. But, he said during a recent meeting, “his views fell on deaf ears.”
As Green Building Law Update reports, the plaintiffs argue in their lawsuit that BOEM failed to assess impacts to tourism and the local economy in its report, among other things.
