Virginia Offshore Wind Technology Advancement Project on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Offshore Virginia

DOE is proposing to fund Virginia Electric and Power Company's Virginia Offshore Wind Technology Advancement Project (VOWTAP). The proposed VOWTAP project consists of design, construction and operation of a 12 megawatt offshore wind facility located approximately 24 nautical miles off the coast of Virginia Beach, VA on the Outer Continental Shelf.

In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) was the lead federal agency and DOE was a cooperating agency in the development of the environmental assessment (EA) titled Virginia Offshore Wind Technology Advancement Project on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Offshore Virginia (OCS EIS/EA BOEM 2014-1000 and DOE/EA-1985). http://www.boem.gov/VOWTAP/

The EA evaluated the potential environmental impacts of providing federal funding to the Proposed Project (DOE’s Proposed Action). The analysis provided in the EA supports DOE’s determination that providing federal funding for the Proposed Project will not significantly affect the quality of the human and natural environment.