Wind: cloudy picture

When President Trump’s executive orders came out yesterday, Ocean City and Worcester County officials, as well as parties on both sides of the offshore wind energy argument, asked, “What does this mean?”

That’s about all anyone would conclude judging from the official responses from Ocean City and Worcester County governments on how the Wind Energy executive order might affect plans by US Wind to erect up to 114 wind turbines off Maryland’s coast.

US Wind, which has almost everything it needs to begin construction, was equally guarded in its reply to similar inquiries.

The order says: “I hereby withdraw from disposition for wind energy leasing all areas within the Offshore Continental shelf (OCS) as defined in section 2 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands act, 43 U.S.C. 1331. This withdrawal shall go into effect beginning on January 21, 2025, and shall remain in effect until this Presidential Memorandum is revoked.

“Nothing in this withdrawal affects rights under existing leases in the withdrawn areas. With respect to such existing leases, the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Attorney General as needed, shall conduct a comprehensive review of the ecological, economic, and environmental necessity of terminating or amending any existing wind energy leases, identifying any legal bases for such removal, and submit a report with recommendations to the President, through the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy.”