Humboldt County has spent years planning for an offshore wind industry off its coast. Now, county officials are making sure a proposed marine terminal could still be useful if those plans change.
The Humboldt County Planning Commission is updating the 44-year-old Humboldt Bay Area Plan. The proposed changes include a heavy-lift marine terminal where offshore wind turbines could be built and sent to sea.
During a meeting last week, Commissioner Iver Skavdal said the county should not write its rules so narrowly that the terminal could only be used for wind turbines.
“We want to be broad enough to make sure that the heavy lift terminal can be used, or does have flexibility to support other industries that might come about in the future that we may or may not know about today," Skavdal said.
The timing of the discussion was notable.
That same day, energy developer RWE announced an agreement with the Trump administration to give up three federal offshore wind leases, including one off the Humboldt County coast. Instead, the company said it would invest in natural gas projects.
Commissioners discussed other industries that could someday use the terminal, including floating solar projects. Oil and natural gas development is restricted under state law.
Commissioner Jerome Qiriazi said he was more confident that the offshore wind marine terminal would move forward.
“This is both a statewide and a national effort,” Qiriazi said. “There's been a lot of work, including legislative action towards identifying Humboldt Bay.”
The plan will continue to identify offshore wind as the primary reason for building the terminal. But county staff will write the rules governing the site more broadly, leaving room for other industries in the future.
