The Trump administration has filed a motion in U. S. District Court, Maryland, to cancel the 2024 approval of the Maryland Offshore Wind Project established under the previous administration. It asserts that the authorisation underestimated impacts on search-and-rescue operations and commercial fisheries, and argues the permitting process was flawed under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act.
The planned wind farm, developed by US Wind, would include 114 turbines with a capacity of approximately 2.2 gigawatts, enough to power around 718,000 homes. It made landfall at 3Rs Beach in Delaware and was approved in December 2024, following years of environmental reviews and state and federal permits.
Government attorneys said that the Corps of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management misjudged key statutory factors such as interference with other federal uses and environmental risks to marine habitat and fisheries. They asked the court to vacate the approval, citing what they term as “an error in the weighing of certain statutory factors” in the Construction and Operations Plan.
US Wind has responded by alleging that political pressure influenced the decisionmakers within the Department of Interior, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and the National Marine Fisheries Service. The company claims the shift in policy represents a departure from longstanding support, without reasoned explanation.
Local stakeholders are sharply divided. Ocean City authorities and businesses have criticised the project, arguing it threatens tourism, fishing, and scenic views. Meanwhile Maryland’s governor has defended the wind farm as a major investment poised to create jobs, bolster energy supply, and contribute to the state’s renewable goals.
Legal experts say this challenge is part of a wider strategy by the administration to roll back clean energy projects approved under its predecessor. Attorneys for the federal government have also pointed to changes to the interpretation of legal frameworks governing oceanic and federal water use, notably revising how the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act is applied.
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