(Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump has suspended new federal offshore wind leasing pending an environmental and economic review, saying wind mills are unsightly, expensive and harm wildlife.
“We're not going to do anything about wind,” he said. “Big, ugly windmills. They destroy your neighborhood.”
Without providing evidence, he said offshore wind energy projects were behind an increase in whale deaths off the East Coast of the United States in recent years.
“It's the most expensive form of energy you can get by far,” he added. “It kills your birds and destroys your beautiful landscape.”
Trump issued an executive action suspending offshore wind leasing from all areas of the U.S. outer continental shelf pending environmental and economic review, a White House press release said.
This order is not expected to impact existing offshore wind projects in the US being developed by companies including Orsted (CSE:), Avangrid (NYSE:), Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, and Dominion.
The move raised concern among wind energy representatives, who said Trump's position conflicted with Trump's promise to maximize national energy production.
“This national energy emergency requires us to unleash all necessary sources of America’s energy — including offshore wind,” said Hilary Bright, executive director of the offshore wind advocacy group Turn Forward.
Former US President Joe Biden saw wind energy as a vital part of his strategy to decarbonize the US energy sector to combat climate change, and his government held multiple auctions aimed at developing large new projects.
Trump's opposition to wind energy represents a dramatic shift from his first term, when his administration also sought to encourage offshore wind development.
The comment came as Trump also laid out a sweeping plan to maximize US oil and gas production while also withdrawing the US from the 2015 Paris climate agreement aimed at combating global warming.
