A Case Study in Offshore Wind Development: Building Respectful Relations with Tribal Nations
Vineyard Offshore respects the sovereignty of Tribal Nations. The company is committed to leading the industry’s most robust Tribal engagement process, with attention to economic, cultural, environmental, and capacity issues, among others, in the interest of environmental justice, equity, and partnership. It is a commitment we have been striving to live up to since starting work on the nation’s first offshore wind farm, Vineyard Wind 1. As Vineyard Offshore, we are still striving toward – and still learning about – how best to work with Tribal leaders and members for mutual benefit, as we continue to evolve the Vineyard method of offshore wind development. These efforts recently resulted in the signing of a historic offshore wind Tribal Benefit Agreement.
Beginning in 2016, the Vineyard Wind team opened a line of communication with Tribal communities in the region. Beyond federal lease requirements to discuss survey plans and engage Tribal members, Vineyard Wind made a concerted effort to ensure that each Tribe was well-informed and had opportunities to engage in project permitting and development activities, as well as data sharing.
This included inviting the six federally recognized Tribes associated with our lease area to tour a geological and geophysical (G&G) survey vessel to learn how surveys are conducted. These Tribes and the state-recognized Chappaquiddick Wampanoag Tribe were also invited to meet with archeological consultants to review the geological data collected and ancient landforms identified in the lease area and export cable corridors. Vineyard Wind also set up a dedicated web portal for Tribes to access studies, reports, and videos from research efforts.
READ MORE IN OUR TRIBAL NATIONS CASE STUDY
HOW VINEYARD OFFSHORE IS BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH TRIBAL NATIONS
