Abstract
Empire Offshore Wind LLC (Empire) proposes to construct and operate an offshore wind farm located in the designated Renewable Energy Lease Area OCS-A 0512 (Lease Area). The Lease Area covers approximately 79,350 acres (32,112 hectares) and is located approximately 14 statute miles (mi) (12 nautical miles [nm], 22 kilometers [km]) south of Long Island, New York and 19.5 mi (16.9 nm, 31.4 km) east of Long Branch, New Jersey (Figure 1-1). The Lease Area will be developed as two wind farms, known as Empire Wind 1 (EW 1) and Empire Wind 2 (EW 2). Monitoring efforts are combined for the proposed wind farms, covering the entire Lease Area as described in the Empire Wind Fisheries and Benthic Monitoring Plan (FBMP) (INSPIRE Environmental [INSPIRE] 2023a). The results provided in this report pertain to samples collected across the entire Lease Area.
The New York Bight supports diverse fish and invertebrate assemblages (Guida et al. 2017; Thorne et al. 2020; NJDEP 2022). As such, the Empire Wind FBMP was designed to assess potential impacts of offshore wind (OSW) development activities within the Lease Area on these biological communities. This FBMP was developed in accordance with recommendations made by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) Guidelines for Providing Information on Fisheries for Renewable Energy Development on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf (BOEM 2019), New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) New York State Offshore Wind Master Plan: Fish and Fisheries Study (NYSERDA 2017), and the Responsible Offshore Science Alliance’s (ROSA’s) Offshore Wind Project Monitoring Framework and Guidelines (ROSA 2021). The Empire Wind team created this FBMP using an iterative process that consisted of coordinating with regional fishing organizations, working groups, and individual fishermen. In addition, through the permitting and development process, the Empire Wind team consulted with state and federal fisheries resource management agencies and solicited feedback directly from stakeholders. Due in part to the concerns of local fishing interests, one component of the FBMP (INSPIRE 2023a) includes a survey designed to document the distribution and abundance of Atlantic sea scallops (Placopecten magellanicus) in the Lease Area and at a designated reference location during baseline, construction, and postconstruction time periods.