Trump administration plans to cancel approval of Maryland offshore wind project

The Trump administration intends to withdraw federal approval for US Wind’s wind farm off the coast of Maryland, according to a document filed in federal court on Friday.

In the filing, in U.S. District Court in Delaware, attorneys from the Department of Justice asked the court to stay a lawsuit by a Delaware homeowner challenging the Interior Department's approval last year of the Maryland Offshore Wind Project.

The action is the latest in a series of moves the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has made to stymie development of offshore wind and other clean energy facilities.

The Biden administration approved the US Wind project in September of last year. It was expected to one day produce enough power for 718,000 homes.

The Trump administration, by September 12, will move in a separate lawsuit brought by officials in Ocean City, Maryland to vacate approval of the facility's construction and operations plan, the filing said. That lawsuit is pending in federal court in Maryland.

"If Interior’s motion is granted, the agency action that Plaintiff challenges will be vacated, and thus his claims will be entirely moot," the filing said.

On his first day in office in January, Trump suspended new offshore wind leasing pending an environmental and economic review of projects. He has repeatedly criticized wind energy as ugly, unreliable and expensive. 

Advocates of wind energy say it is an important element in efforts to reduce carbon emissions blamed for global warming.

Most recently, the Interior Department last week issued a stop-work order on a nearly completed project off the coast of Rhode Island, citing national security concerns.

An Interior Department spokesperson had no comment on the court filing.

US Wind said its project was on strong legal footing.

“Our construction and operations plan approval is the subject of ongoing litigation, but we remain confident that the federal permits we secured after a multi-year and rigorous public review process are legally sound,” said Nancy Sopko, vice president of external affairs for US Wind.