The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Administration (BOEM) has finalized guidance geared towards mitigating the impacts of offshore wind energy initiatives on industrial and for-hire leisure fisheries.
It provides a nationwide framework for addressing social and monetary impacts on the fishing enterprise and establishes clear processes for the offshore wind enterprise to cope with potential disruptions to fisheries. It ensures consistency and promotes trustworthy treatment of fishermen, regardless of their home or landing port.
The guidance emphasizes early engagement and transparency with fishing communities, encouraging lessees to doc interactions. Ideas throughout the guidance deal with design points, safety protocols and financial compensation processes. Compensation measures lengthen by improvement, early operations and decommissioning, ensuring full safety for affected fisheries.
The guidance does not embody floating offshore wind, as BOEM is creating separate guidance explicit to floating infrastructure.