In the latest salvo in California’s ongoing environmental battle with the White House, the state on Friday sued the Trump administration over its attempt to kill offshore wind farms.
Mr. Trump has long despised offshore wind power, falsely saying that it does not work and kills whales. This spring, his administration struck deals with energy companies. In exchange for refunds for what they paid for offshore wind leases, the companies agreed to use the money on oil and gas projects.
One of the deals involved a company called Golden State Wind, which was in the early stages of building a floating wind farm near Morro Bay, along California’s Central Coast. Under the agreement, the U.S. Department of the Interior said it would return $120 million the company had paid for the offshore lease in 2022, to be used on fossil-fuel projects.
Rob Bonta, the state attorney general, and the California Energy Commission on Friday sued the Trump administration and Golden State Wind, saying their agreement to forgo the wind farm jeopardized thousands of jobs and the state’s investments in the offshore wind industry.
Mr. Bonta called the deal a “backroom buyout” by the Trump administration that was intended to “line the pockets” of “Big Oil donors.”
The White House declined to comment on California’s lawsuit. A spokesperson for the Interior Department said that California had been throwing “good money at bad ideas” and that the settlements with the energy companies were voluntary and had been reviewed by the Department of Justice.
“This administration will not sit back and let reckless projects create higher utility costs, a weakened energy system and unnecessary harm to the environment,” a representative with the department wrote in an email.
Golden State Wind did not return a request for comment.
David Hochschild, chair of the California Energy Commission, said that California would continue to focus on clean energy as a way to reduce pollution and provide new jobs.
“We will not let the Trump administration’s reckless actions turn back the clock,” he said in a statement. “California’s clean energy future is worth fighting for. See you in court.”
The post California Sues Trump Administration Over Offshore Wind Cancellation appeared first on New York Times.
