Spike in whale deaths and mounting public pressure push gov’t watchdog to launch investigation into impacts of offshore wind farms

Mounting public pressure from the recent increase in deceased whales washing up on beaches along the east coast has pushed the Government Accountability Office to announce the launch of an investigation into the environmental impacts of offshore wind farms.

The New York Times reported in February that at least 335 whales had washed up along the east coast since 2017.

That month, New Jersey residents, including local lawmakers and environmentalists, protested against the offshore wind farms, calling for officials to “defund green energy” and place a federal moratorium on the projects.

The GAO, a government watchdog agency, told Republican Representative Chris Smith of New Jersey on Thursday that it agreed to his request to investigate the effects offshore wind has on “the environment, the fishing industry, military operations, navigational safety and more.”

House Natural Resources Committee Chair Bruce Westerman (R-AR), Representative Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ), Representative Andy Harris (R-MD), and Smith penned a letter to the GAO on May 15 requesting the probe.

In March, the House of Representatives passed an amendment — sponsored by Smith — to the Lower Energy Costs Act that required an investigation into the potential link between the spike in whale deaths and offshore wind industrialization.

“This aggressive, independent investigation into the ocean-altering impacts of the 3,400 offshore wind turbines slated for the Jersey Shore will help address the wide-ranging questions and concerns that the Biden Administration and Governor Murphy continue to dismiss as they plow full steam ahead with this unprecedented offshore wind industrialization of our shore,” Smith said in a Thursday press release.

“It is absolutely critical that New Jersey residents understand all the impacts of these offshore wind projects—which will permanently transform our marine environment and seascape and could put our tourism-drive economy at grave risk—before it’s too late,” he added.

Smith called for the offshore wind projects to be paused until the GAO completes its investigation.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration continues to deny the potential connection between offshore wind development and whale deaths.

“At this point, there is no evidence to support speculation that noise resulting from wind development-related site characterization surveys could potentially cause mortality of whales, and no specific links between recent large whale mortalities and currently ongoing surveys,” NOAA stated. “We will continue to gather data to help us determine the cause of death for these mortality events. We will also continue to explore how sound, vessel, and other human activities in the marine environment impact whales and other marine mammals.”

This year, so far, at least 14 whales have been found dead along the New York and New Jersey coast, according to the New York Post.

NOAA officials reported that the two most recent deaths, humpbacks found on May 31, were likely caused by blunt force trauma.

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