This Week: Secretary Haaland highlights how the President’s Investing in America agenda is bolstering the clean energy future in New York; the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management gives the go ahead for the third major commercial-scale, offshore wind energy project in the United States offshore New Jersey; Interior leaders travel to Puerto Rico to discuss how the administration’s all-of-government approach is working for the island’s recovery and renewal; a new interactive map from Interior tracks 1,300 projects funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law so far; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service grants are on the way for vulnerable wildlife; an endangered California frog gets a helping hand; this week marks the 160th anniversary of the Civil War’s most pivotal battle; and our social media Picture of the Week is a story of conservation success!
BURLINGTON, VT – Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland traveled to New York and Vermont this week to highlight how President Biden’s Investing in America agenda and “Bidenomics” strategy are working to bolster the clean energy economy and tackle the climate crisis through collaborative conservation.
In Albany, Secretary Haaland and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Liz Klein joined New York Governor Kathy Hochul and Rep. Paul Tonko at the Port of Albany to tour the site of a new offshore wind energy hub. The energy hub is being developed in partnership with industry, state and local government leaders, will serve the offshore wind supply chain and create good-paying manufacturing jobs. This type of collaborative effort is a centerpiece of the Investing in America agenda, which is growing the American economy from the bottom up and middle out — from rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, to driving over $470 billion in private sector manufacturing and clean energy investments in the United States, to creating good paying jobs and building a clean energy economy that will combat climate change and make our communities more resilient.
The visit comes as the Department approved the third major offshore wind project in U.S. waters this week. In the past two years, the Biden–Harris administration has made progress towards catalyzing a new clean energy industry, by investing in workers and communities, while protecting biodiversity and ocean co-use. BOEM expects to review at least 16 Construction and Operations Plans of commercial, offshore wind energy facilities by 2025, which would represent more than 27 GW of clean energy for the nation.
Secretary Haaland also toured Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) projects at Saratoga National Historical Park. With $6 million from GAOA, the park is making improvements to trails and walkouts to make them more accessible for people with disabilities. These projects are help support President Biden’s priority to expand access to outdoor recreation outlined in the America the Beautiful initiative.
In Burlington, Vermont today, Secretary Haaland, Senator Peter Welch, Representative Becca Balint and local leaders discussed historic investments that are helping drive collaborative conservation initiatives in Vermont and across the nation. During the visit, Secretary Haaland highlighted $25 million in funding from the Inflation Reduction Act for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to implement a significant landscape conservation approach for a climate resilient Northern Forest.
As the climate crisis worsens and biodiversity slips away, strengthening the nation’s response to disappearing species and habitat loss is crucial. The new investment will provide for the development and implementation of a collaborative, cross-jurisdictional conservation plan across Northern tier forests in 10 states, and improve infrastructure and habitat to be more climate resilient in the Midwest and Northeast Regions.
The Northern Forest ecosystem provides critical habitat to millions of breeding forest birds and other wildlife and sustains job opportunities in the outdoor recreation economy. Outdoor recreation is a powerhouse for our nation’s economy, generating $862 billion in 2021. In Vermont alone, outdoor recreation contributed $1.5 billion to the state’s GDP (or 4.1%), provided 14,582 jobs, and supported 4.7% of the state’s employment.
The new resources are part of the Department’s Restoration and Resilience Framework, which is guiding $2 billion in investments from the President’s Investing in America agenda to restore lands and waters, advance climate resilience, and address environmental justice across the nation.
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