Trump Pauses Federal Leases and Permits for Wind Energy Projects [Video]

One of the many executive orders President Donald Trump signed on his first day back in office temporarily stopped the United States’ sale of offshore wind leases in federal waters.

It also paused permits, approvals and loans for offshore and onshore wind projects.

“On day one, the Trump administration is putting dirty fossil fuels front and center while delaying progress on renewable energy projects. This is as harmful as it is wrong headed. Putting the brakes on homegrown wind energy is not only bad for clean air, public health, and national security — it cuts short a promising source of additional power at a time when our electricity grid needs it most,” said Kit Kennedy, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)’s managing director for power, in a press release from NRDC.

Wind energy is currently the largest renewable energysource in the United States, providing more than 10 percent of the country’s power. Ninety-nine percent of onshore wind …