WASHINGTON — A new congressionally mandated report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine lays out strategies for the U.S. Coast Guard and other federal agencies to follow when planning offshore renewable energy projects along the U.S. West Coast. The report makes recommendations on data collection, interagency coordination, community engagement, and environmental protection that can inform the region’s clean energy agendas as well as consider the complex commercial, recreational, and security operations also taking place in those waters. The recommendations are intended to capture best practices and improve research, engagement, safety, and governance.

The report outlines key benefits of the West Coast’s offshore wind development, including clean energy, job creation, local economic gains, and expanded scientific research and ecosystem monitoring, alongside potential drawbacks such as restricted fishing access, port disruption, maritime safety concerns, and marine ecosystem impacts. It also details mitigation strategies to ensure benefits outweigh burdens and are distributed equitably across coastal communities.

“If implemented strategically, these projects have enormous potential to meet the region’s robust renewable energy goals,” said R. Keith Michel, former president of the Webb Institute and co-chair of the committee that wrote the report. “Our recommendations seek to help the federal government proactively address concerns and reduce undue burden on local communities.”

Offshore renewable energy development is an emerging component of a clean energy portfolio and is of growing importance on the U.S. West Coast, where floating offshore wind technology is particularly promising. At the same time, these waters support long-standing and diverse maritime activities, including commercial, tribal, and recreational fisheries; domestic and international shipping; port operations; and Coast Guard missions related to safety, security, and environmental protection. As interest in offshore renewable energy grows in the region, understanding how these activities may interact is essential for informed planning and decision-making.

“Successful offshore renewable energy projects require buy-in and input from a diverse set of parties,” said Michele K. Conrad, principal strategist at Oceanbeat Consulting and co-chair of the committee. “We hope our report provides a road map for how they can all meaningfully engage with one another.”

The report makes recommendations to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and the Coast Guard. Tribes, fishing communities, maritime industries, and local governments were also recognized as important partners in the process.

Engagement with Tribes and Maritime Industries
Offshore renewable energy development may affect commercial and recreational fishing and maritime activities by changing access to fishing areas, displacing fishing activity, altering transit routes, restricting use of shipping lanes and port access, and imposing operational constraints during construction. For tribal communities, effects can extend to disrupting long-standing fishing activities and treaty-protected fishing rights. Though new infrastructure developments also have the potential to bring substantial economic opportunities to the communities near the sites, intentional coordination is needed to ensure economic benefits are aligned with community needs.

To minimize negative effects, federal agencies leading offshore renewable energy projects should engage in meaningful dialogue with states, tribes, fishing and coastal communities, and other interested parties, the report recommends. Doing so would promote the exchange of useful knowledge, develop mutual understanding of the needs and concerns of all users, and determine best practices for navigating offshore wind sites. In addition, Congress should designate funding to support consultation and collaboration with tribes that do not have the resources to otherwise engage with the federal government.

U.S. Coast Guard Operations
The Coast Guard conducts various missions in the waters off the West Coast. New offshore renewable energy development should take into account the considerations for search and rescue operations, navigation safety, fisheries enforcement, and maritime domain awareness.

The report recommends the Coast Guard expedite implementation of West Coast navigation fairways and establish planning and coordination procedures to facilitate search and rescue response. Along with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, the Coast Guard should continue to develop and refine procedures for offshore renewable energy projects to mitigate any disruptions.

Environmental Impacts
The California Current Large Marine Ecosystem is a highly productive ecosystem that spans the entirety of the West Coast and should be considered when making plans for large-scale floating offshore wind farms and other renewable energy projects.

The report recommends the National Marine Fisheries Service identify research and data needs to better understand the potential effects of offshore renewable energy on the ecosystem. Lead federal agencies should require offshore renewable energy sites to develop scientifically robust, long-term environmental monitoring plans to ensure comparability across sites and allow public access to the data.

The study — undertaken by the Committee on Impacts on Shipping and Commercial, Tribal, and Recreational Fisheries from Development of Renewable Energy on the West Coast — was sponsored by the U.S. Coast Guard, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are private, nonprofit institutions that provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions related to science, engineering, and medicine. They operate under an 1863 congressional charter to the National Academy of Sciences, signed by President Lincoln.

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