Last month, Heatmap News, a relentless cheerleader for the solar and wind sectors, ran an article headlined, “Trump Is Getting Away With Murdering an American Industry.” The article lamented that dozens of proposed wind projects with 30 gigawatts of generation capacity are now stranded because the Trump administration is deliberately slow-walking — or just ignoring — Big Wind’s permit applications.
The Federal Aviation Administration is doing the slow walking. The FAA is charged with assuring aviation safety. As such, it must provide a “no hazard” determination for any structure over 200 feet tall and ensure that those structures won’t interfere with civilian or military aviation. In previous administrations, the agency has routinely issued clearances for wind turbines, that can stand 500 feet tall or even taller. No longer.
Last month, the War (Defense) Department told a reporter from the Associated Press that it “intends to complete review” of all of the wind industry’s applications “efficiently without compromising the integrity of the review.” In other words, the Trump administration is telling Big Wind: “Don’t call us, we’ll call you.”
The administration’s delay tactic is coming at a key moment. If wind developers can’t demonstrate that they are making significant progress on their projects by July 4, they are unlikely to qualify for the production tax credit, the federal subsidy that has been fueling wind energy development for decades. (Earlier this month, a federal court judge ruled that the Trump administration has to justify the halting of the subsidies. But that ruling can’t force the War Department to speed up its review.)
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