US Wind Announces Key Partnerships with Local Conservation Groups
Company Pledges to Support the Maryland Coastal Bays Program, Assateague Coastal Trust, and the Delaware Center for the Inland Bays
(December 2, 2021) Ocean City, MD – Today, Baltimore-based US Wind, Inc. (“US Wind”) announced key partnerships with three local nonprofit conservation organizations serving the inland and coastal bays in both Delaware and Maryland.
US Wind has pledged $100,000 to the Maryland Coastal Bays Program – a National Estuary Program and nonprofit partnership between the state of Maryland, the towns of Ocean City and Berlin, Worcester County, the Assateague Island National Seashore, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – to help with land restoration and resilience efforts to fight the effects of climate change. A $50,000 pledge has also been made to the Assateague Coastal Trust Coast Kids program, which will enable Delmarva’s youth to immerse themselves in outdoor experiences, ranging from kayaking to bird banding, in order to more fully understand coastal ecosystems.
US Wind has also made a $100,000 pledge to the Delaware Center for the Inland Bays, also a National Estuary Program, which will serve as a capstone contribution to the capital campaign behind their master plan for the James Farm Ecological Preserve. In recognition of the gift, the Center will name the new facility the “US Wind Environmental Education Center at the James Farm Ecological Preserve.”
“Strong connections in the community are critical to our efforts to bring clean energy and good jobs to the region,” said US Wind CEO Jeff Grybowski. “We’re honored to lend our name to the Center for the Inland Bays’ Environmental Education Center and to be partnering with such well-respected and effective local conservation groups on the Delmarva peninsula.”
“We’ve been working with the state, Audubon, and US Wind to find a way to create a new coastal resilience position that will help us stem the loss of our tern and skimmer island habitat,” said Maryland Coastal Bays Program Executive Director Kevin Smith. “This partnership with US Wind will make that much-needed position possible.”
“US Wind’s commitment to clean, renewable energy and the health of our coast is tremendous,” said Chris Bason, Executive Director of the Delaware Center for the Inland Bays. “We’re honored to add US Wind’s name to the Environmental Education Building that will be constructed as a part of the Master Plan for the James Farm Ecological Preserve. Their support will greatly improve the Center’s capacity to educate and engage youth and adults in our efforts to restore the health of the Inland Bays and their watershed for decades to come.”
“As part of the Waterkeeper Alliance, we work closely with our local estuary programs to help reduce nutrient inputs into our local waterways and educate and engage our next generation of environmental stewards,” said Kathy Phillips, Executive Director of Assateague Coastal Trust. “Partnering with US Wind on the Coast Kids program is a huge boost to our efforts, allowing many kids who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford it to attend this experiential program.”
In 2014, US Wind acquired an 80,000-acre federal lease area off the coast of Maryland. In 2017, the company was awarded Offshore Renewable Energy Credits (ORECs) from the state of Maryland for its MarWin project. The passage of Maryland’s Clean Energy Jobs Act in 2019 increased the state’s offshore wind energy requirements, calling for an additional 1,200 MW to be procured from developers with projects near the state’s coast. In 2021, US Wind submitted its vision to fully satisfy Maryland’s offshore wind goals with the full buildout of Momentum Wind. Momentum Wind will also bring steel back to Baltimore via Sparrows Point Steel, a new steel fabrication facility to be built in conjunction with Momentum Wind at Tradepoint Atlantic in Sparrows Point, Maryland.
About US Wind
US Wind was founded in 2011 and has established its position as a premier offshore wind energy development company in the United States. In 2014, US Wind obtained a federal lease for site control to develop approximately 1.5 GW of offshore wind power generation off the coast of Maryland. US Wind is majority-owned by Renexia SpA, a leader in renewable energy development in Italy and a subsidiary of Toto Holding SpA. Toto Holding SpA has more than 40 years of experience specializing in large construction and infrastructure projects, primarily in the energy, transportation, and aviation sectors.
