Shipping lanes off the Atlantic coast are now officially protected from offshore wind farms

The US Coast Guard is proposing to formally designate shipping safety fairways along the Atlantic coast. This means specific routes for ships will be protected from other uses, like offshore wind development, from Long Island to Port St. Lucie.

For decades, ships have used the same routes along the Atlantic coast. Now, these routes will be legally protected. This makes it harder to build new offshore wind farms in these areas, as developers will have to avoid the designated fairways. It also means that the shipping industry has secured its existing access against new competition for ocean space.