Interior Dept. Kills Green Energy Favoritism by Ending Wind Energy Leasing Area Designations
“By terminating these Wind Energy Areas, we are safeguarding our coastal environments and local economies from unchecked development, while ensuring our power grids are not underpinned by unreliable, subsidized energy sources.”
There has been a perfect trifecta of movement among President Donald Trump’s cabinet members and agency administrators, with a focus on making our energy sources both reliable and affordable.
First, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin slams a stake into the heart of the green energy regulatory monster, by rescinding actions based on the “endangerment finding.” That’s the court order that empowered the agency to decide that six key greenhouse gases (including carbon dioxide, methane, and others) endanger both public health and welfare, laying the groundwork for hyper-regulation that restricted both prosperity and personal liberty. Those subsequent rules promulgated by the EPA allowed the agency to essentially conduct a “War on Fossil Fuels,” a “War on Appliances,” and a “War on Meat.”
Then, Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright followed that move by releasing an updated “climate assessment” way ahead of schedule and authored by five serious-minded climate and economic professionals (as opposed to the 400 climate cultists original slated to prepare the document). “A Critical Review of Impacts of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate” is a thoughtful, balanced work that reviews both the science and economics behind “climate change.” The document also references studies that suggest that the economic impact of carbon dioxide-induced warming may be less severe than promoted by the media and activist climate “scientists” and notes that aggressive climate mitigation efforts could potentially do more harm than good.
Yesterday, the third leg of the “America First” energy trifecta dropped. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum announced that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is ending special treatment for unreliable green energy sources, such as wind, to focus on more reliable, affordable sources.
.@Interior is ENDING special treatment for unreliable green energy sources, such as wind, to focus on more reliable, affordable sources in alignment with @POTUS’ Energy Dominance Agenda.
This move is about responsible energy growth that works for every American! pic.twitter.com/2vXdfLNs8d
— Secretary Doug Burgum (@SecretaryBurgum) July 30, 2025
Specifically, the BOEM is rescinding all designated Wind Energy Areas (WEAs) on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). This move ends the federal practice of designating large swaths of offshore areas for wind energy development, effectively de-designating over 3.5 million acres of unleased federal waters previously identified for potential offshore wind projects.
The decision impacts 11 previously designated WEAs across multiple U.S. regions including the Gulf of Mexico, North Carolina, Gulf of Maine, Oregon Coast, and California’s Morro Bay. Specifically, this includes four WEAs off Texas and Louisiana, three off North Carolina, one covering approximately 2 million acres in New England, and two floating WEAs totaling 195,000 acres off Oregon.
“By rescinding WEAs, BOEM is ending the federal practice of designating large areas of the OCS for speculative wind development,” stated the agency in its announcement.
The official announcement has one kicker of a statement, which is so glorious it needs to be highlighted: By terminating these Wind Energy Areas, we are safeguarding our coastal environments and local economies from unchecked development, while ensuring our power grids are not underpinned by unreliable, subsidized energy sources.
Legal Insurrection readers will recall that wind energy developers were disinclined to listen to the complaints or concerns of those in the areas impacted by their projects. Under the new guidelines, the needs of local communities will be part of energy assessment plans.
The Department will strengthen its guidance to ensure more meaningful consultation regarding offshore wind development, especially with tribes, the fishing industry, and coastal towns. The construction and operation of offshore wind turbines have disproportionate impacts on these stakeholders, from disrupting commercial fishing to driving away tourism. By addressing current gaps, this updated guidance will support greater collaboration, transparency, and respect for community and regional priorities.
The Legal Insurrection team has recounted the potential adverse impacts wind farms have had on birds. The new policy mandates careful study of potential harm to birds in migratory paths from wind turbines and a review of relevant regulations around bird protection.
The Department will conduct a careful review of avian mortality rates associated with the development of wind energy projects located in migratory flight paths and determine whether such impacts qualify as “incidental” takings of birds under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and related laws. The Department will also conduct a review of the applicable regulations to determine the appropriate approach to permitting these activities, identifying violations of the applicable statutes, and related penalties.
Hot Air’s Beege Welborn sums up the ultimate effect of the BOEM’s new policy:
What Burgum did yesterday was pull the rug out from under damn near every wind project that hasn’t done a piling sounding.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) rescinded all the wind energy leasing areas. Just like POOF! GONE!
OFF THE MAP
You can’t lease it if it ain’t there.
Wind guys should take their green crap and go home: Trump ends the federal practice of designating large areas of the OCS for speculative wind development.https://t.co/0dcjYqGjDD pic.twitter.com/8xlZiWxGEn
— Steve Milloy (@JunkScience) July 30, 2025
And while this is all good news, many citizen groups must still be mindful of court cases and current projects that are already initiated.
Three points:
1. Yesterday’s announcement by @BOEM was huge, and took thousands of square miles off the table for future development of industrial offshore wind installations.
2. While @SecretaryBurgu’s order introduces even more uncertainty, there are still several projects… pic.twitter.com/zM16OePctv
— Protect Our Coast NJ (@njcoast_protect) July 31, 2025
Hopefully, the Trump administration will continue to successfully erase Obama and Biden era green energy lunacy.
He who relies on wind relies on Satan's mercy. https://t.co/viBnrbdu9o
— Leslie Eastman ☥ (@Mutnodjmet) August 1, 2025
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Comments
Thanks to the help of Sheldon Whitehouse and his wife, it’s too late for the RI fishing industry. Those monsterous bird and marine wildlife killers are all around what used to be prime fishing grounds.
green-oceans.org
Hopefully, without subsidies the RI bird amd
Marine killers will stop moving all together
Any way to claw back the billion$ of taxpayer subsidies already squandered on biden green new deal projects?
Wind turbines! I remember when they first appeared in the Altamont Pass in the early 1980s. If you drive east on I-580 past the city of Livermore on the way to Tracy, your car will climb a steep rise. Go to “Google Earth” and type “Altamont Pass” to get a great view of the scenery, and an insert will appear with the turbines. These wind turbine farms were among the earliest to appear after the 1973 oil embargo. They enjoyed a generous tax subsidy from California. I remember the tremendous variety of designs. Obviously they were not well thought out in the rush to get the tax subsidy. When the subsidy stopped, many of the turbines stoped turning. These were the days well before the global warming hoax. You can also give credit to Jerry Brown, California’s worst governor. The turbines went from a local menace to a global one. The European economy has been devastated by the hoax. I think Germans pay something like four times what we pay for electricity. Germany has gone crazy, and it seems to be de-industralizing as per the punishing Morgenthau Plan, which Truman abandoned as too extreme.
Should the Democrats get back into power, they will go nuts and redo all the damage, just as a start, with much worse to follow. Of course the GOP being a bunch of stupid poltroons will let them. The whole D must be terminated with extreme prejudice.
What I haven’t yet seen is a study relating the harmonics of the wind turbines to their effect on fault lines and plate tectonics
Too late for the Baltimore area. Our rates have gone up. They used to be low thanks t coal and nuclear.
Massachusetts is in the same Marxist boat with respect to energy supply and drastically increased costs.
sink lefty nowwww while we have the chance
come on gop
stop being rinos
Now do data centers.
The new regulations lack one thing that I think is very important:
Builders of wind turbines should be required to escrow the amount of money necessary to remove the turbine and its foundations should it become permanently inoperative.
That would make windmills even MORE economically unviable!