Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) today issued the following statement in response to the Biden-Harris Administration’s approval of the construction and operations plan for the Atlantic Shores South offshore wind proposal:

            “The Biden-Harris Administration has foolishly greenlighted a catastrophe in the making by approving the construction and operations plan for the Atlantic Shores South offshore wind project.

            Allowing this project to move forward with construction when other projects have been blatantly unsafe and unviable makes no sense whatsoever.  

            During this past summer, several beaches in Massachusetts were littered with large, sharp fiberglass shards when a blade from a Vineyard Wind turbine failed disastrously. Just last week, the manufacturer of these blades announced they would be laying off as many as 900 workers citing industrywide challenges for offshore wind.

            Here in New Jersey, another offshore wind project was forced to pause its project at least through December—and potentially longer—because the company in charge of the project could not secure a viable turbine blade manufacturer.

            To add insult to injury, the approval of each new offshore wind project means higher electricity costs for New Jersey ratepayers.

            It’s long past time the Biden-Harris Administration and Governor Murphy come to their senses and stop propelling this train wreck in slow motion.”

###