Abstract
This report supplements the Sunrise Wind Construction and Operations Plan.
Sunrise Wind LLC (Sunrise Wind), a 50/50 joint venture between Orsted North America Inc. (Orsted NA) and Eversource Investment LLC (Eversource), proposes to construct and operate the Sunrise Wind Farm (SRWF) and the Sunrise Wind Export Cable (SRWEC), collectively the Sunrise Wind Farm Project (hereinafter referred to as the Project). The wind farm portion of the Project will be located in federal waters on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) in the designated Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Renewable Energy Lease Area OCS-A 0487 (Lease Area).1 The Lease Area is approximately 30.5 statute miles (mi) east off the coast of Montauk, New York (Figure 1). The Lease Area was awarded through the BOEM competitive renewable energy lease auction of the Wind Energy Area off the shores of Massachusetts and Rhode Island Wind Energy Area (MA/RI WEA). Other components of the Project will be located in New York State (NYS) waters and onshore in the Town of Brookhaven, Long Island, New York.
BOEM provides guidance related to specific survey gears that can be used to complete the fisheries monitoring including otter trawl, beam trawl, gillnet/trammel net, and ventless traps. BOEM guidelines stipulate that two years of pre-construction monitoring data are recommended, and that data should be collected across all four seasons. Consultations with BOEM and other agencies are encouraged during the development of fisheries monitoring plans. BOEM also encourages developers to review existing data, and to seek input from the local fishing industry to select survey equipment and sampling protocols that are appropriate for the area of interest. Benthic monitoring that is planned for New York state waters is described in a separate monitoring plan.