Agency Milestone Date of 03/20/2023 for NOAA determines EFH Assessment is Complete (Agency Action) has passed by 1 business days
Cooperating under NEPA
Description:
Section 305(b)(2) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) requires federal agencies to consult with NOAA Fisheries on any action or proposed action that may adversely affect Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). EFH exists throughout all of the coastal and offshore areas affected by the Empire Wind project and associated transmission system. The proposed action may adversely affect these resources, therefore EFH consultation is required. Based on anticipated adverse impacts to EFH, an expanded consultation will be required. The final consultation completion date is contingent upon NOAA Fisheries receiving sufficient information to initiate EFH consultation. Also note that NMFS has authorities under the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act for this project. NMFS expects the coordination and consultation under the Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act to be concurrent with the EFH consultation.
Milestones:
This reflects the anticipated date of receipt of initial EFH Assessment from BOEM and reflects the beginning of the cooperating agency review for the DEIS. EFH consultation request is set to be concurrent with receipt of the preliminary DEIS for cooperating agency review. Meeting this milestone target date is contingent upon NOAA Fisheries receiving an EFH Assessment from the lead agency by the date provided.
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Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
:
Official Notice of Availability of a Draft EIS published in the Federal Register (FR) beginning both the public comment period and concurrent CAA Section 309 Review (Agency Action)
- Completed Date: 12/16/2022
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Monthly Status Report for June 2023:On April 10, 2023 NMFS determined the EFH consultation package complete.
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Monthly Status Report for May 2023:BOEM undertook a comprehensive review of the permitting timetable for this project with the cooperating agencies and project sponsor. The review encompassed all NEPA and associated agency actions and milestone dates for the project, including this action. The review culminated in a request from BOEM on February 28, 2023 for an Executive Director Determination to update interim and final completion dates for multiple actions, including this action. On March 30, 2023, the Executive Director made a determination to adjust the permitting timetable as requested, with the exception of this action. Because the Executive Director did not have enough time to make a decision more than 30 days in advance of the completion date of this action, as required under the FAST-Act (42 U.S.C. § 4370m-2(c)(2)(D)(ii)), this action was not modified through the ED Determination and instead followed the non-conformance protocol. The alternative completion date for this action, as set forth in the BOEM request to the Executive Director, was published on the dashboard.
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Non-conformance Explanation:BOEM undertook a comprehensive review of the permitting timetable for this project with the cooperating agencies and project sponsor. The review encompassed all NEPA and associated agency actions and milestone dates for the project, including this action. The review culminated in a request from BOEM for an Executive Director Determination to update interim and final completion dates for multiple actions, including this action. The Executive Director made a determination on March 30, 2023 to adjust the permitting timetable as requested, with the exception of this action. Because the Executive Director did not receive BOEM's request with enough time to make a decision more than 30 days in advance of the completion date of this action, as required under the FAST-Act (42 U.S.C. § 4370m-2(c)(2)(D)(ii)), this action was not modified through the Determination and will instead follow the non-conformance protocol to make the requested schedule modification. As background for BOEM's requested milestone changes, on June 29, 2022, FPISC published BOEM's requested date shift for the NEPA DEIS from August 2022 to December 2022. The associated NMFS consultation date change requests have been shifted accordingly. The previous consultation dates were associated with the previous NEPA schedule and therefore are out of sync with the current schedule and consultation timelines. Note: the milestone for 'NOAA Determines the EFH Assessment is Complete', was completed on April 10, 2023.
EFH consultation initiation is contingent upon NOAA Fisheries receiving sufficient information (a complete EFH assessment) from BOEM to initiate EFH consultation. EFH consultation is expected to be initiated at least 60 days after the issuance of the NOA of the DEIS to allow adequate time to review the incoming materials and ensure receipt of complete information prior to initiation of consultation.
EFH consultation initiation is contingent upon NOAA Fisheries receiving sufficient information (a complete EFH assessment) from BOEM to initiate EFH consultation. EFH consultation is expected to be initiated at least 60 days after the issuance of the NOA of the DEIS to allow adequate time to review the incoming materials and ensure receipt of complete information prior to initiation of consultation.
-
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
:
Official Notice of Availability of a Draft EIS published in the Federal Register (FR) beginning both the public comment period and concurrent CAA Section 309 Review (Agency Action)
- Completed Date: 12/16/2022
-
Monthly Status Report for June 2023:On April 10, 2023 NMFS determined the EFH consultation package complete.
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Monthly Status Report for May 2023:BOEM undertook a comprehensive review of the permitting timetable for this project with the cooperating agencies and project sponsor. The review encompassed all NEPA and associated agency actions and milestone dates for the project, including this action. The review culminated in a request from BOEM on February 28, 2023 for an Executive Director Determination to update interim and final completion dates for multiple actions, including this action. On March 30, 2023, the Executive Director made a determination to adjust the permitting timetable as requested, with the exception of this action. Because the Executive Director did not have enough time to make a decision more than 30 days in advance of the completion date of this action, as required under the FAST-Act (42 U.S.C. § 4370m-2(c)(2)(D)(ii)), this action was not modified through the ED Determination and instead followed the non-conformance protocol. The alternative completion date for this action, as set forth in the BOEM request to the Executive Director, was published on the dashboard.
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Non-conformance Explanation:BOEM undertook a comprehensive review of the permitting timetable for this project with the cooperating agencies and project sponsor. The review encompassed all NEPA and associated agency actions and milestone dates for the project, including this action. The review culminated in a request from BOEM for an Executive Director Determination to update interim and final completion dates for multiple actions, including this action. The Executive Director made a determination on March 30, 2023 to adjust the permitting timetable as requested, with the exception of this action. Because the Executive Director did not receive BOEM's request with enough time to make a decision more than 30 days in advance of the completion date of this action, as required under the FAST-Act (42 U.S.C. § 4370m-2(c)(2)(D)(ii)), this action was not modified through the Determination and will instead follow the non-conformance protocol to make the requested schedule modification. As background for BOEM's requested milestone changes, on June 29, 2022, FPISC published BOEM's requested date shift for the NEPA DEIS from August 2022 to December 2022. The associated NMFS consultation date change requests have been shifted accordingly. The previous consultation dates were associated with the previous NEPA schedule and therefore are out of sync with the current schedule and consultation timelines. Note: the milestone for 'NOAA Determines the EFH Assessment is Complete', was completed on April 10, 2023.
EFH consultation initiation is contingent upon NOAA Fisheries receiving sufficient information (a complete EFH assessment) from BOEM to initiate EFH consultation. EFH consultation is expected to be initiated at least 60 days after the issuance of the NOA of the DEIS to allow adequate time to review the incoming materials and ensure receipt of complete information prior to initiation of consultation.
All dates below are specific to the schedule of the Environmental Review and Permitting processes for this project.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING STATUS
IN PROGRESS
ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE OF ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING
04/09/2024
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING PROCESSES
COMPLETED
SECTOR
Renewable Energy Production
CATEGORY
Project Category
FAST-41 Covered Projects
LEAD AGENCY
Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
View FAST-41 Postings by Agencies
Other Agencies with Actions or Authorizations:
Department of the Army, US Army Corps of Engineers - Civil Works
Department of the Army, US Army Corps of Engineers - Regulatory
Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service
Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Environmental Protection Agency
Description:
Dominion Energy is proposing to construct, own, and operate the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) Commercial Project (the Project). The Project will be located in the Commercial Lease of Submerged Lands for Renewable Energy Development on the Outer Continental Shelf Offshore Virginia (Lease No. OCS-A-0483) (Lease Area). The Lease Area, located within Official Protraction Diagram NJ18-11 Currituck Sound, covers approximately 112,799 acres (45,658 hectares) and is approximately 27 statute miles (23.75 nautical miles, 43.99 kilometers) off the Virginia Beach coastline.
FAST-41 provides increased transparency and predictability by requiring Federal agencies to publish comprehensive permitting timetables for all "covered" projects, and provides clear procedures for modifying permitting timetables to address the unpredictability inherent in the environmental review and permitting process for significant infrastructure projects. For more information, see "The FAST-41 Process" at https://www.permits.performance.gov/fpisc-content/fast-41-process.
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Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
:
Official Notice of Availability of a Draft EIS published in the Federal Register (FR) beginning both the public comment period and concurrent CAA Section 309 Review (Agency Action)
- Completed Date: 12/16/2022
-
Monthly Status Report for June 2023:On April 10, 2023 NMFS determined the EFH consultation package complete.
-
Monthly Status Report for May 2023:BOEM undertook a comprehensive review of the permitting timetable for this project with the cooperating agencies and project sponsor. The review encompassed all NEPA and associated agency actions and milestone dates for the project, including this action. The review culminated in a request from BOEM on February 28, 2023 for an Executive Director Determination to update interim and final completion dates for multiple actions, including this action. On March 30, 2023, the Executive Director made a determination to adjust the permitting timetable as requested, with the exception of this action. Because the Executive Director did not have enough time to make a decision more than 30 days in advance of the completion date of this action, as required under the FAST-Act (42 U.S.C. § 4370m-2(c)(2)(D)(ii)), this action was not modified through the ED Determination and instead followed the non-conformance protocol. The alternative completion date for this action, as set forth in the BOEM request to the Executive Director, was published on the dashboard.
-
Non-conformance Explanation:BOEM undertook a comprehensive review of the permitting timetable for this project with the cooperating agencies and project sponsor. The review encompassed all NEPA and associated agency actions and milestone dates for the project, including this action. The review culminated in a request from BOEM for an Executive Director Determination to update interim and final completion dates for multiple actions, including this action. The Executive Director made a determination on March 30, 2023 to adjust the permitting timetable as requested, with the exception of this action. Because the Executive Director did not receive BOEM's request with enough time to make a decision more than 30 days in advance of the completion date of this action, as required under the FAST-Act (42 U.S.C. § 4370m-2(c)(2)(D)(ii)), this action was not modified through the Determination and will instead follow the non-conformance protocol to make the requested schedule modification. As background for BOEM's requested milestone changes, on June 29, 2022, FPISC published BOEM's requested date shift for the NEPA DEIS from August 2022 to December 2022. The associated NMFS consultation date change requests have been shifted accordingly. The previous consultation dates were associated with the previous NEPA schedule and therefore are out of sync with the current schedule and consultation timelines. Note: the milestone for 'NOAA Determines the EFH Assessment is Complete', was completed on April 10, 2023.
EFH consultation initiation is contingent upon NOAA Fisheries receiving sufficient information (a complete EFH assessment) from BOEM to initiate EFH consultation. EFH consultation is expected to be initiated at least 60 days after the issuance of the NOA of the DEIS to allow adequate time to review the incoming materials and ensure receipt of complete information prior to initiation of consultation.