BOSTON (AP) — U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar is announcing that environment assessments on major wind energy initiatives off the Rhode Island and Massachusetts coast have been completed.
Salazar announced the completion of the environmental reviews Monday, saying the findings will help place the U.S. at the forefront of the “renewable energy revolution.”
The environmental assessment of the Rhode Island/Massachusetts Wind Energy Area will help the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in future leasing decisions under the Obama administration’s offshore wind energy initiative.
Bureau director Tommy Beaudreau said the landmark assessment will help identify the best location for commercial wind energy activities off Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
In 2010, Salazar launched the wind energy initiative for the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf to facilitate siting, leasing and project construction.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
