Clean Energy Future

Developing a robust and sustainable clean energy economy

 


Offshore windfarm featuring a line of turbines in the ocean.

I believe that a clean energy future is within our grasp, but it will take all of us and the best available science to make it happen.”

—Secretary Deb Haaland 

From coastal towns and rural farms, to urban centers and Tribal communities, climate change poses an existential threat — not just to our environment, but to our health, our communities, and our economic well-being. At the Department of the Interior, we know that the time to act on climate is now.

Renewable energy — including solar, onshore and offshore wind, geothermal, and wave and tidal energy projects — will help communities across the country be part of the climate solution while creating good-paying union jobs. 

The Biden-Harris administration is taking an all-of-government approach toward its ambitious renewable energy goals that will create jobs to support families, boost local economies, and help address environmental injustice. 

As directed by President Biden’s Executive Order 14008, Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, the Interior Department has partnered with other federal agencies to increase renewable energy production on public lands and waters —including a commitment to deploy 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030, 15 gigawatts of floating offshore wind by 2035, and a target goal of permitting at least 25 gigawatts of onshore renewable energy by 2025.

To facilitate this transition to clean energy and meet our ambitious goals, the Department has announced a new offshore wind leasing strategy, which includes holding up to seven new offshore wind lease sales by 2025. This strategy provides two crucial ingredients for success: more certainty for industry, and transparency for our stakeholders and ocean users.

Since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, the Department has approved the nation's first six commercial scale offshore wind projects, held three offshore wind lease auctions – including a record-breaking sale offshore New York and the first-ever sale offshore the Pacific and Gulf Coasts, initiated environmental review of 10 offshore wind projects, and advanced the process to explore additional Wind Energy Areas in Oregon, Gulf of Maine and Central Atlantic. The Department has also taken steps to evolve its approach to offshore wind to drive towards union-built projects and a domestic based supply chain. 

Onshore, the Biden-Harris administration is expanding renewable energy technologies like wind, solar, and geothermal across public lands while upholding essential regulatory and review processes to avoid adverse human and wildlife impacts. These efforts are bolstered by ongoing updates to the Western Solar Plan, which helps identify where solar resources are high and conflicts are low for accessible and reliable renewable energy for more families across the country.  

The demand for renewable energy has never been greater. The technological advances, increased interest, cost effectiveness, and tremendous economic potential make these projects a promising path for diversifying our national energy portfolio while at the same time combatting climate change and investing in communities.

At every step of the way, the Interior Department will undertake these goals with broad engagement, including fishermen, outdoor enthusiasts, sovereign Tribal nations, states, territories, local officials, agricultural and forest landowners, and others to identify strategies and goals that reflect the priorities of all communities.

Resources:

Was this page helpful?

Please provide a comment