West Coast Universities Launch New Pacific Offshore Wind Collaboration • Oregon Capital Chronicle

Three West Coast universities located near future offshore wind sites are joining forces to undertake research and help inform the public about the benefits and potential impact of the new industry.

An auction scheduled for later this year for two wind farms off the coast of Oregon has raised both excitement about the potential for clean energy development and concerns from local residents, tribes and the seafood industry over the Biden administration’s push for offshore wind development . It has target to produce 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030 and called for the development of the university.”centers of excellence” to help drive this development.

On the west coast Pacific Wind Consortium announced on May 14 in Sacramento, California. It consists of three university research centers in Oregon and California. The goal is to pool resources and expertise to raise more funding and engage in broader information-sharing and research collaborations with state and federal agencies, tribes and cities on the West Coast.

“We can be that kind of trusted, neutral third party to try to tell them what the state of the industry is and help build capacity in the community so they can negotiate, discuss and communicate with some of these wind developers,” said Bryson Robertson, director Pacific Marine Energy Center in Oregon, one of three university research centers participating in the project.

The other two participating institutions are the Schatz Center for Energy Research in Northern California at Cal Poly Humboldt in Arcata and the Center for Coastal Marine Sciences at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, California. The two universities are closest to five leases off the California coast that were auctioned last year to international wind energy companies.

Two wind energy areas that will be auctioned off the Oregon coast later this year are near Coos Bay and Brookings. They can deliver up to 2.4 gigawatts of clean energy to the grid – enough to power approximately 830,000 homes – with installations covering more than 195,000 total acres. Each identified wind energy area is located 20 to 30 miles offshore.

Concerns and possibilities

Seafood groups, along with five tribes in Oregon and California, are opposing plans to develop wind energy off the coast of both states. In November, the Tribal Council of the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians adopted a resolution said they oppose offshore wind development in part because federal officials have not contacted them or responded to their concerns.

“There are a lot of concerns and questions from the community, and there is a lack of adequate data-driven knowledge and information dissemination to help people make decisions,” said Robertson of Oregon State.

“As Oregonians, we should be thinking: How can we maximize the benefits of a lease sale if it occurs? How can we make sure they have provisions requiring union work? Is there a clear benefit to the community built into it? There are a number of possibilities in which the state could apply or impose leasing sales needs and requirements,” he said

The state is trying to develop standards in the field of offshore wind energy through, among others, House Bill 4080, which Governor Tina Kotek signed into law earlier this year. The law directs the Oregon Department of Energy to develop an action plan for state offshore wind development policies that includes community input and work guidelines.

Experts in their field

Each research center already has experts and is conducting research in areas that can help support better scientific discussions and decisions about offshore wind energy and its ecological impacts. For example, Oregon experts have long been exploring and testing offshore wave energy infrastructure and have conducted extensive research on the environmental, social and technical issues associated with the marine renewable energy industry.

The institutions began talks about cooperation last year when the US Department of Energy called for the creation of more university research centers dedicated to the development of offshore wind energy. So far, the Biden administration He approved development of eight offshore locations.

According to a news release, the three institutions have more than $12 million in funding for research on offshore energy generation and its environmental impacts, as well as a $1.6 million commitment from private donors and industry. They hope to get at least $4 million more from the U.S. Department of Energy as a center of excellence.

The consortium is overseen by an advisory committee that includes leaders from two tribes – the Blue Lake Rancheria and the Yurok Tribe – as well as state agencies including the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development, Oregon Department of Energy, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Oregon Sea Grant – a partnership between Oregon State University and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.