The Trump administration has halted construction of a sprawling wind farm under construction off the Long Island coast — claiming its permits were “rushed” through without proper research.
“Staff of the Department of the Interior has obtained information that raises serious issues with respect to the project approvals for the Empire Wind Project,” Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum wrote in a Wednesday letter to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
“Approval for the project was rushed through by the prior administration without sufficient analysis or consultation among the relevant agencies as relates to the potential effects from the project,” he added, pointing the finger at former President Joe Biden. “This halt is to remain in effect until further review is completed to address these serious deficiencies.”
Burgum later confirmed the move in a statement on X.
It’s the latest development in a drama that’s been brewing in the waters about 15 miles off the southeast coast of Long Island, where the Norwegian energy company Equinor has broken ground on 54 wind turbines known as Empire 1.
The project — backed by Mayor Adams and Gov. Hochul — is supposed to bring power to 500,000 homes, and is part of an ambitious plan to make New York State fossil fuel-free by 2050.
But it has drawn criticism from Nassau County officials, who argue marine life and the local fishing industry will be harmed, and that the island will be left strapped with power lines through dense residential areas.
Its future was first cast into question when President Trump returned to office on Jan. 20 and promptly signed a sweeping executive order halting wind energy leasing in federal waterways.
Empire 1 already had its permits in hand and work on the turbine foundations continued.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman has been among the most vocal local critics of the project, and echoed Burgum’s comments during a Wednesday press conference in Long Beach.
“We’ve had a very lengthy and fruitful and detailed conversation about the whole projects that are on the boards,” Blakeman told reporters. “Those that have been approved, as I have said previously, we don’t believe that the process, the approvals process, was done in a fair way.”
“We don’t think it was done in a correct way,” he added. “We don’t think it was done in a diligent way. We think there was shortcuts. We think there was false information. And a lack of public input.”
Burgum wrote that a federal review into the project’s permitting would continue.
Gov. Hochul denounced the move — the latest blow to the state’s green energy agenda — and vowed to fight the Trump administration’s move.
“This fully federally permitted project has already put shovels in the ground before the President’s executive orders—it’s exactly the type of bipartisan energy solution we should be working on,” Hochul said Wednesday.
“As Governor, I will not allow this federal overreach to stand. I will fight this every step of the way to protect union jobs, affordable energy and New York’s economic future,” she added.
An Equinor spokesperson confirmed it had received notification from BOEM about the project, which the company said has been under construction since last year.
“We will engage directly with BOEM and the Department of Interior to understand the questions raised about the permits we have received from authorities,” the spokesperson told The Post. “We will not comment about the potential consequences until we know more.”
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