The NCAI has called for a halt to offshore wind energy development until BOEM creates a process to consider Tribal impacts.
COOS BAY, OREGON-In November, the Tribal Council of the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians passed a resolution opposing offshore wind energy development off the Oregon Coast. The resolution corresponds with the deadline for comments on the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management ("BOEM") two draft Wind Energy Areas ("WEAs") for development of wind energy in areas near Florence and Brookings.
"The Tribe has not taken a position for offshore wind, but rather, we are at the table to learn about the impacts," said Tribal Council Chair Brad Kneaper. "We recognize that all energy development has impacts and BOEM has failed to provide assurance that wind energy development will do good and not harm the Tribe, its members, and the greater coastal community."
In multiple communications with BOEM, the Tribe has raised concerns about wind energy development-including a request that important, cultural viewsheds be excluded from the WEAs and that wind development avoid or exclude areas critical to resident and migratory species, including important areas for fishing.
The Tribe called upon BOEM to halt its process to allow for consideration of impacts of wind energy, including consideration of a congressionally mandated National Academy of Science study on wind energy impacts to fisheries on the West Coast.
"Standards for green infrastructure should not be less than other energy development," said Vice Chair Doug Barret. "Green infrastructure must not trump the federal government's obligations to protect tribal resources. That is simply green colonialism. Because an energy is renewable is not justification enough to rush a process, to ignore or minimize adverse impacts to our community, environment, or cultural resources."
The Tribe's resolution echoes the concerns of other local governments, including Lane County and Coos County, which has expressed opposition to wind energy development, and resolutions of regional and national tribal organizations, including the National Congress of American Indians, which has called for a halt to the approval process until BOEM develops a process to consider Tribal impacts.
This process is running roughshod over Tribal concerns, the concerns of commercial fishing, and local government. The Biden's Administration of 30 gigawatts of wind energy by 2030, while an admirable goal, should not provide a blank check for BOEM to disregard the coastal resources that we hold dear," said Chair Kneaper.
"The Tribe has called the Coast our home since Time Immemorial," said Vice Chair Barrett. "The unique landscape, places of religious significance, viewsheds and traditional resources of our Ocean, bays, upland dunes, forests, archaeological features, cultural resources, and first foods connect us to our tribal ancestors. Our homelands and ocean have been the foundation of our way of life since time immemorial and remains a cornerstone of our Tribe to this day.
"As a confederation of coastal tribes deeply dependent on the ocean and its rich resources, we assert a direct interest in the viewshed extending from our shores, encompassing a distance of at least twelve nautical miles beyond the continental shelf. We believe it is our inherent right to have the ability to see across our viewsheds, as this direct connection is integral to our cultural practices and traditional way of life. This connection empowers us to protect and conserve our cultural resources for the prosperity of our future generations."
