SOURCE:
https://libn.com/2025/11/06/esposito-for-reliable-power-long-island-needs-offshore-wind/
By Adrienne Esposito - November 6, 2025
In Brief:
Experts warn New York could face energy shortages as early as 2027.
Offshore wind offers clean, reliable power and price stability.
South Fork Wind Farm already powers 70,000 Long Island homes.
Upgraded transmission and new wind projects are urgently needed.
This fall, New Yorkers across the state showed up and spoke up to demand clean, affordable, reliable, safe and healthy energy infrastructure during the state’s energy plan hearings. Tragically, the Trump administration is wreaking havoc on our nation’s clean energy progress, making it more important than ever for New York to step up and lead the way to the sustainable, resilient system we need. Right now, we’re not on track.
The state’s draft energy plan proposes to implement a clean grid by 2040, but we need to ensure that New York can meet that reality. The proposed rollout of clean energy resources, including wind and solar, is simply too slow. Political deals could result in the exact opposite: More reliance on fossil fuels to power our homes, risking our health and environment in the process.
Just last month, a new report highlighted significant concerns about the reliability of our electric grid and warned us that we could be facing an energy shortfall as early as 2027. Long Island could face power shortages due to aging power plants, increasing energy demand and transmission constraints. The solution is to upgrade our aging transmission system with projects such as Propel and add more offshore wind to meet the growing demand.
Offshore wind is one of New York’s best resources to boost our power supply, keep energy prices stable, create high-quality jobs, and fight the devastating environmental and health harms that our fossil fuels are creating. Long Island has been breathing smog-polluted air for decades; the longer we rely on fossil fuels, the longer we’ll be making ourselves sick. Renewable energy such as offshore wind, facilitates us to get the electricity we need while protecting our health.
Offshore wind just makes sense for New York since our winds are strong and consistent, and our population centers are on the coasts making it faster and easier to deliver power from wind farms directly to our Island.
Offshore wind delivers power when we need it most. It generates energy throughout the day and produces even more in the afternoon and evening when everyone starts powering up their devices at home. During the coldest months of the year—when energy demand and our bills tend to skyrocket—offshore wind is at its most productive. That helps keep the lights on and keep us warm, and since it displaces the need for more expensive fossil fuels, it also helps keep prices stable.
Facts are important. Throughout this year, 70,000 homes on Long Island are receiving electricity from the South Fork Wind Farm. Temperatures hit 99 degrees Fahrenheit in the heat wave this past June, causing the New York City power grid to have a major emergency resulting in brown outs in Brooklyn and Queens. Thankfully, South Fork Wind Farm delivered power at nearly maximum output, averting any disaster for Long Island residents and kept the air conditioners running. South Fork Wind is proof of why wind works. Projects like South Fork Wind are crucial for a reliable grid.
To become our country’s leader in renewable energy, New York should continue their strong efforts to stand up for offshore wind. New York’s vision of 9 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity, could generate enough energy to power 5 million homes and cut 15 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from the state’s power sector, while creating thousands of good-paying jobs. Now is the time we should be investing in clean energy, building new infrastructure and upgrading existing transmission lines.
We can’t afford to miss this opportunity.