Rhode Island Sea Grant Lays Groundwork for Long Island Offshore Wind Farm Approved to Power 50,000 Homes

May 4, 2022

Wind turbine as part of the nation’s first offshore wind farm off of Block Island. Photo credit: Rhode Island Sea Grant

A growing global market for clean energy and an abundance of offshore wind off the East Coast has prompted developers to seek permits to capitalize on this budding offshore industry. Rhode Island Sea Grant extension staff helped facilitate the Ocean Special Area Management Plan that laid the groundwork for siting and permitting the nation’s first offshore wind farm off of Block Island, which has been a jumping off point for the developer, Deepwater Wind, in securing new contracts. With the successful installment of the Block Island wind farm and a growing market for offshore wind development, Deepwater Wind won a $740 million contract by the state of New York to construct a 15-turbine, 90-megawatt offshore wind farm 30 miles off the coast of Montauk intended to generate enough energy to power 50,000 homes on Long Island’s South Fork.

Marine Debris

Sea Grant Marine Debris Grantee PolyGone Announces the Grand Opening of its Microplastic Removal Pilot

PolyGone Systems is pleased to announce the Grand Opening of the Microplastic Removal Pilot Project and the Educational Pavilion at the Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA)! The Grand Opening will take place on September 12, 2024, at the Atlantic County Utilities Authority Wastewater Treatment Facility.

The event will showcase PolyGone Systems’ industrial-scale microplastic removal pilot project within the Atlantic County Utilities Authority’s Wastewater Treatment Facility. Alongside the pilot deployment, PolyGone will unveil the Microplastic Educational Pavilion, an on-site exhibition for public visitors and students to learn about microplastic pollution and PolyGone’s environmental mission. Keynote speakers from the NOAA Sea Grant Office will be featured at the Grand Opening.

Catch up with Sea Grant and USCRP at ASBPA National Coastal Conference

The American Shore & Beach Preservation Association’s National Coastal Conference welcomes all coastal stakeholders and managers to learn the latest science, engineering and policy needed

Sea Grant programs receive awards through NOAA Climate Resilience Regional Challenge

The NOAA Office for Coastal Management’s Climate Resilience Regional Challenge is funding projects to increase resilience to extreme weather events and address longer-term, chronic climate hazards. This one-time, $575 million competitive grant program is providing the opportunity to collaboratively implement transformational regional projects that will build immediate and long-term resilience in coastal areas.