Dear ROSA Community,
As you know, this week the Biden administration announced a plan to expand the use of offshore wind power along the East Coast. While there are uncertainties about how this plan will evolve, and the implications for various sectors, one thing is clear -- that ROSA’s mission of generating science to inform policy and practice is critical. This week’s news underscores the importance of our efforts to better understand the interactions between offshore wind and fisheries.
We are making progress:
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This week ROSA’s working group completed its Offshore Wind Project Monitoring Framework and Guidelines. The group’s efforts have been a great proof of concept of how we can work together toward a common goal and produce useful outputs.
- We are in the final stages of considering candidates for the Director of Research position and hope to have someone on board in April or May.
- We have been pursuing funding to seed our scientific studies.
The following provides more detail on recent developments at ROSA.Thank you to all who have contributed to our work in recent months.
Monitoring Framework and Guidelines Published
I am pleased to report that ROSA’s Offshore Wind Project Monitoring Framework and Guidelines has been finalized and can now be accessed on our website. Building on existing Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) guidance, the ROSA guidelines are intended to inform the development of fisheries research and monitoring plans at commercial offshore wind farms and associated areas. Please share these guidelines widely. We are viewing the guidelines as a “living document” that we will be updating -- incorporating new learnings -- on an ongoing basis.
ROSA will be hosting a webinar to discuss the guidelines on Friday, April 9, from 2-3 pm EST. We hope that you will join us for this conversation. Please register here.
The guidelines were developed by ROSA’s first working group, comprised of state and federal government representatives, fisheries scientists and researchers, fishing industry representatives, and wind developers. This group has devoted many, many hours over the past 10 months to bring this document to fruition, with input from numerous individuals in the community who commented on the first draft. Thank you so much to all who contributed to this important document.
