Offshore Wind

OFFSHORE WIND and NHPA 

Renewable energy is an important part of our response to climate change and should be developed in ways that respect cultural heritage. Historic preservation and clean energy goals are not mutually exclusive.  Indeed, the historic preservation movement is a leader in finding creative ways to address climate change and sea level rise. However, communities with significant inventories of historic properties connected to historic ocean viewsheds have legal rights under the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) and the National Historic Preservation Act (“NHPA”) that too often get overlooked.  Under these federal statutes and related state laws, federal agencies have a duty to assess adverse effects on historic and cultural resources and find ways through meaningful consultation to avoid, minimize, or mitigate harm.   

Cultural Heritage Partners PLLC currently represents several historic preservation organizations and municipalities. Our work on behalf of clients is driven by our belief that communities and offshore wind developers can and should forge long-term partnerships. Establishing trust, engaging in consultation, and developing creative solutions make it possible to achieve clean energy goals while ensuring that communities have ways to offset the development’s harms to heritage tourism, property values, and historic context. 

Notable Engagements 

• We negotiated a 10.5-million-dollar settlement with GE Vernova for the July 4, 2025 blade failure that impacted the Town of Nantucket. This Settlement has allowed the Town of Nantucket to develop a claims fund for adversely effected businesses. 

• • Town of Nantucket Statement about Settlement 

• • Settlement claims website 

• We negotiated for the Town of Nantucket a Good Neighbor Agreement with Vineyard Wind to address harms to historic properties from the construction of the nation’s first utility-scale offshore wind farm and create long-term benefits for the community. The GNA allowed for a Community Benefit Program  

• We negotiated a Memorandum of Understanding between Vineyard Wind and Nantucket to ensure further accountability and formal protocols for information sharing, timely communications, and emergency planning and response 

• For a preservation advocacy organization with one of the nation’s largest inventories of National Historic Landmark ocean-facing properties, we are providing ongoing representation in the federal permitting review for three offshore wind farms that will drastically alter their community’s viewshed and the context of historic districts purpose-built to appreciate ocean vistas. Some FAQs of the federal appeals process can be found here. 

Questions?

Please contact our team leader, Greg Werkheiser.