Biden Admin. Floats Wind Factory on Native Land

The Biden administration is considering shrinking a Native American tribe’s proposed marine sanctuary to make room for an offshore wind factory owned by a major donor to the Democratic Party.

Late last month, the administration proposed cutting approximately 1,400 square miles of ocean and coastline from a planned national marine sanctuary in the Pacific Ocean to accommodate wind turbine infrastructure, The Washington Free Beacon reported.

One of the wind factories would be owned by privately-held green energy company Invenergy, whose founder and CEO Michael Polsky has made more than $400,000 in campaign contributions to Democrats since 2016. According to the Free Beacon, the company spent $2.4 million to lobby the White House, Congress, and federal agencies this year alone.

While renewable energy companies would benefit from the proposal, environmental groups claim that such projects kill birds and whales, which is the very wildlife the sanctuary aims to protect.

Polsky gave $72,000 to House Democrats’ campaign committee in 2020 and 2022, according to the Free Beacon, as well as $35,000 to the Democratic National Committee and $75,000 to Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in 2016. Of the roughly $500,000 he has donated to political causes since 2016, more than $400,000 has gone to Democrats, the outlet found.

Federal campaign contribution records show that Invenergy employees gave more than $120,000 to President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign; Polsky himself did not contribute to the bid.

The Northern Chumash Tribal Council reportedly first petitioned for a 7,600-square mile marine sanctuary in 2015. Years later, the Biden administration announced it was in favor of building offshore wind turbine development in the same area.

According to the tribal council, the administration’s latest proposal would cut 29 miles of coastline and approximately 1,400 square miles from the marine preserve, as it was originally envisioned. The final boundaries will be set after the public comment period ends on Oct. 25.

In proposing its alternative boundary to allow for green energy projects, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) conceded that “certain concentrations of this infrastructure may not be compatible with a national marine sanctuary.”

The preserve’s goal of protecting marine life could be sabotaged by the installation of wind turbines, with environmentalists warning that offshore wind factories on the East Coast may be killing whales. The Biden administration has dismissed such concerns as “misinformation,” despite the deaths of more than 70 whales since December.

Paul Michel, NOAA’s West Coast marine sanctuary coordinator, acknowledged that “concerns are out there,” and told the Free Beacon that the offshore wind companies themselves will be responsible for calculating potential environmental impact

"We just do not know," he said. "There’s never been this level of wind farm development in the United States."

A Northern Chumash Tribal Council spokesperson told the Free Beacon that the tribe plans to keep advocating for the inclusion of the full coastline in the marine sanctuary and said it hopes for “the largest area possible to be protected.”

• US to Focus Bison Restoration on Expanding Tribal Herds
• Wind Turbines Collapsing, Malfunctioning in US, Europe