- Details
- By Chez Oxendine
- Energy | Environment
A coalition that includes the Wampanoag tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) and the Narragansett Indian Tribe has filed a federal lawsuit seeking to overturn approvals for the Sunrise Wind offshore wind project, arguing that regulators advanced the development without complying with key environmental and historic preservation laws.
The 79‑page complaint, filed March 24 in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, challenges the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s Record of Decision and Construction and Operations Plan for the project.
Federal regulators approved Sunrise Wind in March 2024, authorizing up to 84 turbines about 16 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard with a projected capacity of 924 megawatts. The project, developed by Danish multinational energy company Ørsted, is designed to deliver power to New York’s grid.
The lawsuit points to a May 2025 Interior solicitor’s memo that withdrew the interpretation used to approve Sunrise Wind and directed agencies to revisit affected projects. Plaintiffs argue that BOEM has not reevaluated the project and is allowing it to proceed under a now-withdrawn standard.
The tribes joined fishing interests, a marine advocacy group and coastal property owners in the lawsuit.
The Narragansett Indian Tribe alleges the project would industrialize waters central to its cultural and subsistence practices, affecting fishing, gathering and ceremonial uses.
The Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe raises similar concerns, arguing the project would alter sacred viewsheds, disturb submerged cultural resources and affect areas tied to the tribe’s history and identity, including Nantucket Sound and the Aquinnah cliffs.
The complaint alleges BOEM failed to adequately assess cumulative environmental impacts and relied on a flawed legal interpretation in approving the projects.
The lawsuit asks the court to vacate Sunrise Wind’s approvals and remand the project to BOEM for reconsideration under a lawful interpretation of federal statutes.
Brian Edwards contributed reporting.
