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South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, which is being developed into a staging facility for Equinor's Empire Wind offshore wind project, in New York City, in an undated aerial photograph. Equinor via Reuters
Environmental organizations on June 3 sued the U.S. government, alleging that its reversal of a stop-work order on a $5 billion wind farm project off the coast of New York City violates federal law.
The May 19 update from the Department of Interior, which permitted work to resume on Empire Wind, violates the Administrative Procedure Act because it does not offer facts supporting the reversal, according to the lawsuit.
The groups are asking the federal court in New Jersey to vacate the reversal, which would reinstate the earlier stop-work order.
“We will not stand by while our ocean is sacrificed for foreign interests and political vanity,” Amy Disibio, a board member for ACK for Whales, one of the groups, said in a statement. “We will fight in court and in the court of public opinion until every piece of this reckless project is removed.”
The Department of Interior and Equinor, a Norwegian company that is working on the project, both told The Epoch Times via email that they do not comment on litigation.
Empire Wind is an offshore wind project that spans about 80,000 acres roughly 15 miles south of Long Island.
According to Equinor, it will feature up to 130 wind turbines and provide sufficient energy to power 1 million homes. The project is about 30 percent complete.
President Donald Trump, upon taking office in January, required the secretary of the interior to investigate offshore wind projects and determine whether they would cause harm. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, in an April order, directed all work on Empire Wind to stop until a review was completed. Burgum said approval of the project was rushed through “without sufficient analysis.”
A month later, the Trump administration reversed the stop-work order.
“That Order is hereby amended to lift the halt on activities during the ongoing review,” Walter Cruickshank, acting director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, part of the Department of Interior, wrote at the time.
Cruickshank did not explain the decision.
Both New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Equinor hailed the development.
“We appreciate the fact that construction can now resume on Empire Wind, a project which underscores our commitment to deliver energy while supporting local economies and creating jobs,” Anders Opedal, president and CEO of Equinor, said when the order was reversed.
The Administrative Procedure Act lets judges invalidate government actions found to be “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law.”
Officials never completed the review ordered in April, and did not outline a justification for the reversal of the stop-work order, which violates the law, the groups said in the suit.
