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By Mark Chediak and Ari Natter
President Donald Trump’s executive order directing government agencies to halt approving new wind energy projects was ruled illegal by a federal judge.
The ruling Monday sided with more than a dozen states and a New York clean energy group that had challenged the executive order that essentially froze US approvals of wind energy developments pending a review.
Trump issued the executive order on his first day in office, a move that included a freeze in permitting wind power projects despite warnings from developers it imperiled jobs from coast to coast. It was part of his administration’s efforts to boost the nation’s output of fossil fuels and reverse former President Joe Biden’s federal support of clean energy.
Trump’s campaign to thwart renewables — and offshore wind in particular — have whipsawed industries that had been favored by Biden. Whereas Biden pushed to green US electric grids, Trump has moved to prop up traditional fuels, including natural gas and coal, that are capable of providing round-the-clock power at a time of surging electric demand from data centers.
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In the executive order, Trump said it was needed to address “legal deficiencies” in the government’s approval of both off and onshore wind projects.
“Under Joe Biden’s Green New Scam, offshore wind projects were given unfair, preferential treatment while the rest of the energy industry was hindered by burdensome regulations,” White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said Monday in a statement.
— With assistance from Josh Wingrove
(Updates with comment from the White House in sixth paragraph.)
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