A month after President Donald Trump signed an executive order to restrict — and in some cases, entirely halt — wind energy development in the United States, renewable energy advocates are still reeling.
In addition to a moratorium on any new offshore wind leases, the executive order mandates a review of existing wind leases to decide the “ecological, economic, and environmental necessity of terminating or amending” them.
The Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, which manages offshore wind, haven’t announced any such decisions yet. But lawmakers say the order has already changed the landscape for existing projects, and some are worried it could be devastating for energy and the economies of their districts.