ACTION ALERT
After experiencing a summer of intense storms and wildfires throughout the country, it is crucial that we show support for the offshore wind industry that will create good union jobs and help address the climate crisis.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is seeking public comment on a proposed sale notice for the offshore wind energy areas in the NY Bight, far off Nassau County's shores. The New York labor movement has fought and secured strong labor standards for offshore wind and large-scale renewable energy projects here in New York, and now we need to establish strong standards at the federal level, starting with the NY Bight.
We need labor unions and community members LIKE YOU to submit supportive comments. With regional offshore wind commitments totaling over 30 gigawatts (GW) and New York’s goal of 9,000 megawatts (MW) of offshore wind by 2035, the region is dependent on the proposed lease areas to meet clean energy targets. There's also the opportunity to create tens of thousands of good union jobs in the NY bight proposed lease areas, so we need to highlight the vast potential of the industry and the job opportunities it can create for New Yorkers -- and the concrete steps BOEM can take to make sure those are good union jobs.
Comments are due by August 13. Click here to submit your comments online.
Please see sample statements below to copy and paste into the online commenting board. Questions? Please contact Mariah Dignan, LI lead for Climate Jobs NY, at mdignan@climatejobsny.org or at 646-708-5474.
I am a New York Union Member and I strongly believe that Americans should not have to choose between a good job and a clean environment—we can and must have both. The proposed sale notice for the eight lease areas in the NY Bight is an opportunity to not only drive the nation’s clean energy future but can help create quality, family-sustaining union jobs at the same time. I urge BOEM to move forward by requiring strong labor standards in the lease stipulations and hold a lease auction by the end of this year.
As a union member, I support offshore wind. Large-scale utility development like offshore wind not only will help reduce our massive carbon footprint but will also mean a tremendous amount of economic opportunity in the form of jobs and community benefits. We have been preparing for this moment for a very long time. We urge approvals and next steps for the proposed sale notice in the NY Bight to be as expeditious as possible to get the men and women in the labor movement to work, and we urge BOEM to require high-road labor practices in offshore wind development in its lease areas.
I am a member of the Long Island labor movement and I support offshore wind and holding a lease sale for the NY Bight by the end of 2021. By including strong labor standards like paying prevailing wage, project labor agreements, and labor peace agreements in future offshore wind lease stipulations, we can create a clean energy economy that puts workers and their families first.