Texas Weekly Online

Texas-trans-white
Menu
Menu

Author:

Nantucket group appeals to Supreme Court to end offshore wind projects and protect endangered whales

Nantucket group appeals to Supreme Court to end offshore wind projects and protect endangered whales

A group of Nantucket, Massachusetts, residents are appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court in their challenge to the industrialization of parts of the Atlantic Ocean, where they say offshore wind farms – developed with the blessing of the federal government – are putting an endangered whale species at risk.  The group, Nantucket Residents Against Turbines, argues in its petition to the high court that “the federal government has lost sight of its statutory obligations to conserve endangered species that will be directly affected by the construction of thousands of wind turbines in the Atlantic Ocean.”  They argue that the federal agencies that authorized the leasing of the water area to wind turbine companies excluded certain data in their analysis to the benefit of offshore wind development. “Despite the agencies’ explicit statutory duty to consider all ‘best information available,’ regarding the impacts its actions might have on an endangered or threatened species and those habitats, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), did not consider the cumulative impacts of other planned projects when they authorized and issued permits to construct the Vineyard Wind 1 Project.” MAINE LOBSTERMEN CATCH BIG COURT VICTORY AGAINST BIDEN ADMINISTRATION’S ‘EGREGIOUS’ REGULATIONS The petition to the high court is the latest swell in a surge of opposition to offshore wind development that was fast-tracked at the behest of the Biden-Harris administration, which has incentivized a goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore energy by 2030.  Pursuant to that goal, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which President Biden signed into law in 2022, gave millions in tax breaks to green energy production deals. Vineyard Wind, a joint venture between foreign entities Avangrid and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, is the nation’s largest offshore wind energy project off the New England coast – 15 miles off Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. The project was one of the first beneficiaries of the IRA. Vineyard Wind boasted of a $1.2 billion “first-of-its-kind tax equity package” for commercial scale offshore wind with three U.S.-based banks, calling it “the largest single asset tax equity financing and the first for a commercial scale offshore wind project.”  “The Vineyard Wind 1 Project is the first of the government’s ‘coordinated steps’ to construct about 30 wind turbine projects along the Atlantic seaboard that, when built out, will have thousands of turbines covering millions of acres of federal submerged lands,” the petition states.  “Vineyard Wind LLC has constructed, or partially constructed, 47 of the 62 approved wind turbines, with each turbine spaced one nautical mile apart. Once fully constructed, each turbine stands 853 feet above the water and is almost three times the size of the Statue of Liberty.” The petition notes that 47 turbines so far have “already begun to adversely impact the Nantucket community, the ocean environment, and marine species’ habitat.” “Although not considered in any environmental impact analyses, problems with the turbines have also already begun. In July 2024, a large portion of a 350-foot fiberglass and PVC blade broke off one of Vineyard Wind’s turbines into the water, and pieces of the blade washed ashore and littered the beaches of Nantucket,” it notes.  ‘RUINED BY NEGLIGENCE’: DAVE PORTNOY BLASTS NANTUCKET WIND FARM AFTER BROKEN BLADE SHUTS DOWN BEACHES The petition argues that around the time of the Vineyard Wind 1 Biological Opinion, BOEM had issued over 25 offshore wind leases (on which one or more projects will be built). However, in the Biological Opinion, NMFS openly stated that it did not consider the cumulative impacts of those projects. The North Atlantic right whale, which has been on the brink of extinction for more than 100 years, will “bear the brunt of the federal government’s shortcutting of the environmental review process,” the petition argues.  “Despite the obvious effects that constructing wind turbines all along the North Atlantic Right Whale’s migratory route and now year-round habitat will have, the agencies evaluated only the impacts caused by the Project itself and ignored obvious impacts from all the other projects planned in the Atlantic Ocean,” it states.  The petition argues that the Supreme Court should hear this case to decide a circuit split between the Ninth and First Circuit decisions on the matter, which conflict with one another.  “Petitioners ask this Court to grant review of the important issue presented in this petition to resolve the split among the circuits and provide guidance to lower courts that will soon be facing the identical issue on how to conserve endangered species while seeking to achieve renewable energy objectives,” it states.   Between the fishing industry arguing that offshore wind production unduly prohibits their business, to unprecedented whale deaths and the Nantucket blade disaster, criticism has mounted in recent months.  However, despite public favor dwindling, government officials are still pushing for record areas of the Atlantic Ocean to be industrialized.  Earlier this month, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healy announced the single largest procurement of offshore wind in the state’s history by pursuing purchase agreements with SouthCoast Wind, New England Wind and Vineyard Wind II.  Rebecca Tepper, the secretary of the state’s office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, said the state said, “offshore wind is our future, and it is vital that we build that future today.” LOCAL FISHERMEN SLAM BIDEN ADMINISTRATION’S NEWLY UNVEILED PLANS TO INDUSTRIALIZE GULF OF MAINE “By going big now with projects, we are going to lead the nation in the global race for developers, vessels, materials and expertise,” she said.  As to why wind energy production is undeterred by environmental warnings and concerns, Annie Hawkins, executive director of Responsible Offshore Development Alliance, says that offshore wind companies and government agencies are working hand-in-hand. “For a long, long time now, we’ve had the tail wagging the dog in terms of the wind developers, energy companies and utilities, as well as investment banks and everyone else pushing forward offshore wind from a private sector perspective and from an economic interest investment. It’s far outpaced the environmental look and thought around offshore wind,” Hawkins

Fox News Media will present special live programming of Vance-Walz debate

Fox News Media will present special live programming of Vance-Walz debate

Republican Ohio Sen. JD Vance and Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will face off in a vice presidential debate Tuesday evening, with Fox News airing special programming across its key platforms, including the Fox News Channel and Fox News Digital.  Vance and Walz will travel to New York City for their first and only scheduled debate of the election cycle. The debate will be held at 9 p.m. EST. The debate will be moderated by “CBS Evening News” anchor Norah O’Donnell and “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan.  The Fox News Channel, FOX Business Network, Fox News Digital, Fox News Audio and Fox Nation will air special programming of the debate.  VANCE VS. WALZ: THINK VP DEBATES DON’T MATTER? JUST LOOK AT THESE 6 EXAMPLES Fox News will begin broadcasting special coverage at 8 p.m. Tuesday, kicking off with debate preview analysis from “Jesse Watters Primetime” until 8:20, when the Fox News Channel will then air “FOX News Democracy 2024,” which will be hosted by Bret Baier, Martha MacCallum, Jesse Watters and Laura Ingraham.  EXPERTS PREVIEW VANCE-WALZ DEBATE, SAY USUALLY ‘FORGETTABLE’ VP BOUT ‘MIGHT BE DIFFERENT’ THIS TIME Fox News’ Sean Hannity will also join the coverage live from the debate’s spin room. Congressional correspondent Aishah Hasnie and senior White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich will also report live from the spin room.  The Fox News Channel will present “FOX News Democracy 2024: CBS Vice Presidential Debate” between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. Tuesday, which is a simulcast of CBS’s vice presidential debate.  JD VANCE DEBATE PREP STRATEGY INCLUDES TAPPING PROMINENT LAWMAKER TO PLAY WALZ The debate will last 90 minutes and wrap up at 10:30 p.m. The debate will include two four-minute commercial breaks, and campaign staff will not be permitted to interact with their respective candidates during the breaks, per debate rules.  Microphones for Vance and Walz will not be muted during the debate, unlike the recent presidential debates, but CBS could turn off their mics if moderators find it is warranted.  Vance won the coin toss and will deliver the final remarks.  Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Hamas leader killed in Lebanon was UN employee, agency confirms

Hamas leader killed in Lebanon was UN employee, agency confirms

A U.N. human rights group confirmed Hamas’ leader in Lebanon, who was recently killed by Israeli strikes, was their employee.  Fateh Sherif was killed Monday in an airstrike on the al-Bass refugee camp in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre, along with his wife and children. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) noted that Sherif had been on suspension with the organization since March but had not been fired.  “Fateh Al Sharif was an UNRWA employee who was put on administrative leave without pay in March and was undergoing an investigation following allegations that UNRWA received about his political activities,” an UNRWA spokesperson said in a statement to Fox News Digital.  At the time, his suspension sparked widespread protests and strikes by teachers in Lebanon.  “Sherif was responsible for coordinating Hamas’ terror activities in Lebanon with Hezbollah operatives. He was also responsible for Hamas’ efforts in Lebanon to recruit operatives and acquire weapons,” the Israel Defense Force (IDF) and Israeli Security Agency (ISA) said in a joint statement.  “He led the Hamas terrorist organization’s force build-up efforts in Lebanon and operated to advance Hamas’ interests in Lebanon, both politically and militarily.” ISRAELI STRIKE KILLS HAMAS COMMANDER IN LEBANON  Israel alleges UNRWA is overrun with terrorist sympathizers, a claim the agency denies.  Sherif was the principal of the UNRWA-run Deir Yassin Secondary School in al-Bass and head of the UNRWA teachers’ union, which has around 2,000 teachers.  “Through that position, and as principal of a large UNRWA school, he was able to recruit operatives, and to brainwash generations of Palestinians to engage in terrorism,” Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, told Fox News Digital.  Neuer and his organization had long pushed U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini to fire Sherif and said they provided both with a dossier proving his involvement in Hamas.  “Everyone at UNRWA knew. Yet they refused to act,” Neuer said.  IRAN’S AYATOLLAH ALI KHAMENEI IN HIDING WITH EXTRA SECURITY FOLLOWING HEZBOLLAH LEADER’S DEATH: REPORT  “Even as school principal al-Sharif openly incited terrorism on social media for over a decade, UNRWA did nothing. They failed to fire or even condemn their school principal for being a Hamas terror chief. Only this year, when there was intense scrutiny of UNRWA, did they finally slap him on the wrist with a suspension – while for months insisting that they were conducting ‘an investigation.’” The Sherif killing unfolded as another terrorist group, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, said three of its leaders were killed in an airstrike that hit the upper floor of an apartment building in Beirut, according to Reuters.  Israeli officials said Monday they will “continue to operate against anyone who poses a threat to the civilians of the State of Israel.”  Israel over the past few days has expanded its attacks on Iran-backed militant groups in the region, also killing Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in an airstrike over the weekend. While it weighs a full-on ground offensive, the IDF has been launching small special forces operations in southern Lebanon.  A reported Israeli airstrike hit central Beirut, the first strike at the heart of the capital since 2006, in an escalation of the bombing that local officials say has killed more than 1,000 in Lebanon.  Iran has vowed Israel’s “criminal acts” would not go unanswered, while President Biden has insisted all-out war in the Middle East “must be avoided.”

Trump narrows Harris’ small lead in battleground Michigan, Wisconsin, poll finds

Trump narrows Harris’ small lead in battleground Michigan, Wisconsin, poll finds

Former President Trump has narrowed Vice President Kamala Harris’ small lead in the battleground states of Michigan and Wisconsin, new polling by the New York Times/Siena College finds.  Among likely voters in Michigan, Harris received 48% support, while Trump garnered 47%, locking the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees in an essential tie well within the poll’s margin of error. Harris polled at 49% among likely voters in Wisconsin, while Trump received 47% support in the same state where polls usually overestimate backing for Democrats, according to the Times.  The Times pointed to the economy, which remains the most important issue for voters, as Trump’s strength on economic issues helps him edge away at Harris’ slim lead in the two northern battlegrounds.  The new poll contrasts with August’s New York Times/Siena College survey, which has Harris leading Trump by four percentage points, 50% to 46% among likely voters, in the battlegrounds of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania as well. That poll was the first conducted as the race reshaped with Harris becoming the presidential nominee following President Biden’s July departure from the contest.   FOX NEWS POLL: HARRIS, TRUMP IN CLOSE RACE IN NORTH CAROLINA Now with less than 40 days until the Nov. 5 election, New York Times/Siena College polling places Harris ahead of Trump by nine percentage points in Nebraska’s Second Congressional District, whose sole electoral vote could be critical in the Electoral College. The Times says Harris could receive exactly 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House if she picks up that district – given the vice president also wins Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania and Trump is victorious in the Sun Belt battleground states.  Though Ohio does not fall into the battleground state category for the presidential race, it’s home to one of the nation’s most competitive Senate contests between Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown and GOP challenger Bernie Moreno. New York Times/Siena College polling has Trump six points ahead of Harris in Ohio, whereas Brown leads Moreno by four points. TRUMP VISITS WISCONSIN TOWN SHAKEN BY MIGRANT CRIME: ‘CROSSED KAMALA’S WIDE-OPEN BORDER’ Democrats have enjoyed an advantage for months in presidential contest polling in Wisconsin, which has been determined by less than a percentage point in four of the last six elections, including the 2020 race, the Times notes. Meanwhile, Biden carried Michigan by three points in 2020, while Trump won that Wolverine State in 2016 by three-tenths of a point.  Abortion was placed as the second most important issue among Michigan and Wisconsin voters.  The new poll found 18% of voters in the two states listed abortion as their top issue, noting an uptick since May when 13% of voters in Michigan and Wisconsin marked it as their determining cause. On abortion, Harris leads Trump by 20 points in Michigan, but now only by 13 points in Wisconsin. Harris had a 22-point lead over Trump in August on the abortion issue in the Badger State.