US Gov’t Seeks New Review of US Wind’s Maryland Project

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has asked a federal court to send the approval for US Wind’s Maryland Offshore Wind Project back to the Department of the Interior (DOI) for reconsideration.

In the motion for remand, filed in the US District Court for the District of Maryland on 13 October, the DOJ said the approval of the project’s construction and operations plan (COP) should be reassessed under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), citing potential impacts on commercial fisheries, scientific research, coastal views and protected species, including the endangered North Atlantic right whale.

The remand has been requested “without vacatur”, which would allow the DOI to reconsider the approval without revoking it while the re-evaluation is underway.

The motion was filed as part of a lawsuit brought by the Mayor and City Council of Ocean City, Maryland, and other plaintiffs in 2024, which has been challenging the federal green light for the offshore wind project. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) issued the COP approval in December 2024.

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