RESPECT FOR TRIBAL SOVEREIGNTY IN OFFSHORE DEVELOPMENTS Tribal Nations understand the need to shift to renewable energy sources. More so than other communities in the United States, Tribal Nations are experiencing the direct effects of climate change. Tribal Nations along the coastline are witnessing the loss of territory as rising sea levels wash away their land, and oil spills contaminate foraging grounds. While our Nations understand, based on firsthand experience, the need to shift towards renewable energy and to address climate change, these changes should not come at the expense of tribal sovereignty. On January 30, 2023, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, (“BOEM”), issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPR”) regarding its Outer Continental Shelf renewable energy regulations. According to BOEM the agency is seeking to streamline the process for approving offshore windfarms and implement changes that will save offshore energy developers approximately $1 billion over twenty (20) years. Tribal Nations need to be consulted on the BOEM’s proposed rules because it has the potential to negatively impacts to Tribal Nations from damage to cultural and natural resources. t Existing windfarms are responsible for the deaths of at least one (1) whale a week. Tribal fishermen are concerned about the impacts the proposed expansion will have on the fishing industry. Some of the most fertile and productive fishing areas will be affected by the development of offshore windfarms. Moreover, many Tribal Nations have treaty rights that protect their ability to fish, which BOEM needs to take into consideration. Additionally, BOEM’s proposed rules do not include protections for culturally important sites that are now underwater. BOEM should rescind the NPR until the agency has undertaken meaningful consultation with Tribal Nations. Meaningful consultation means that: • Tribal governments have an opportunity to be involved in the development of any new rules from the beginning to the end; and • Tribal Nation concerns are considered equally with those of private industry; and • Traditional indigenous ecological knowledge is included in the definition of the best science available when evaluating projects and their impacts; and • BOEM includes protections for cultural heritage sites which are now underwater and will be impacted by the windfarm developments.
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