OCEAN CITY, Md. — Local leaders from Worcester County traveled to Washington, D.C. last week to urge federal lawmakers to stop a proposed offshore wind project off Maryland’s coast.
Maryland State Senator Mary Beth Carozza, Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan, and Worcester County Commissioner Joe Mitrecic were among a group that met with Kentucky Congressman Brett Guthrie, who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee. The meeting focused on growing opposition to the U.S. Wind project slated for construction near Ocean City.
“We have a united front, the strong opposition that’s only been building,” Carozza said. “Really, the Stop Offshore Wind movement has been building — and we have some momentum right now.”
The visit followed the Trump administration’s decision to halt the Empire Wind project off the coast of New York. Local officials say that decision adds urgency to their own efforts.
Mayor Meehan also sent a letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum on Friday, claiming the U.S. Wind project was “fast tracked by the Biden administration.”
“We don’t want to pass up any opportunity that we feel might help us move toward the stopping of this particular project,” Meehan said. “And we felt that this particular meeting was extremely important.”
U.S. Wind, the developer behind the Maryland project, responded to the meeting in a statement saying it looks “forward to working with the new administration to fully realize the potential of American ingenuity and innovation.”
Carozza believes the federal government should apply the same standard to Maryland’s project.
“If you can halt that in New York, certainly you can halt the offshore wind project off Maryland’s coast,” she said.