Conservative groups sue to stop Virginia offshore wind project, says threatens whales

A coalition of conservative groups has filed a lawsuit against federal agencies and their top officials and the company planning to build what is expected to be the world's largest offshore wind project.

The Heartland Institute, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow and the National Legal and Policy Center, Public Radio East reports, are asking for a preliminary injunction to stop the construction of the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project, a 2.6-gigawatt project being developed by Dominion Energy.

The 61-page complaint filed in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia, according to Fox News, argues the project would cause significant harm to the North American right whale.

The lawsuit alleges that agencies illegally approved the project that will subject the endangered whales to harm.

A Dominion spokesperson told Fox News the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management completed a thorough environmental review that considered impacts to marine wildlife. The spokesperson also said federal agencies and scientific organizations deny that offshore wind adversely impacts marine life.

Wildlife conservationists, however, argue that a recent uptick in deaths of these endangered whales corresponds with increased preparatory activity leading to the construction of offshore wind projects that are part of President Joe Biden’s climate agenda. Such activities create large amounts of noise that they say is causing the whales to die.