Svend Brandt-Erichsen Discusses Impact of Halted Wind Farm Project on Industry

Svend Brandt-Erichsen was quoted in the Bloomberg Law article “Trump’s Halt of Wind Farms Shows Scope of Anti-Renewables Effort.” The article discussed the Interior Department’s stop-work order for Orsted’s Revolution Wind offshore wind project as an example of how the Trump administration has ramped up efforts to significantly slow renewable energy development in a first-of-its-kind move that could have a lasting impact on the use of federal lands.

The article linked the Revolution Wind order to another recent order issued by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, which said wind and solar projects on federal lands and waters may be illegal under three environmental laws, the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and the Federal Lands Policy and Management Act.

Among the impacts that Secretary Bergum’s broader order could have, Svend said, “It could influence long-term planning for federal lands and waters, potentially closing off lands for renewable energy in planning documents that are often in effect for decades.”

Commenting further, Svend said, “There could be an effort to rewrite plans to close areas to renewables development… the order questioning whether federal wind and solar projects are legal is likely indefensible in court because it uses a legal standard for unnecessary and undue environmental degradation as a primary reason to target renewables. I don’t think Interior could defend making that determination based solely on this factor. Those tests are intended to consider a wide range of factors.”