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Megyn Kelly’s recent segment on the Jersey Coast tapped into a growing frustration that hardworking coastal communities have been feeling for years: decisions about energy and the environment are being made in distant boardrooms and federal offices with little regard for local livelihoods. Kelly brought on a student correspondent and Rep. Jeff Van Drew to underscore real concerns — from marine life disturbances to toxins and threats to the fishing and tourism economy — concerns that deserve a sober, commonsense hearing rather than reflexive cheerleading for pet green projects.
Those warnings are already being borne out in the market: Shell walked away from the massive Atlantic Shores project after concluding the economics and regulatory environment no longer made sense, a $1 billion write-off that should prompt every taxpayer to ask who was truly on the hook for these expensive experiments. The withdrawal is not a fringe anecdote; it is a wake-up call that private investors are reassessing the risk, and ordinary people will feel the fallout if rushed projects collapse or require endless taxpayer backstops.
The industry’s troubles are not limited to one company. Ørsted’s dramatic cancellation of Ocean Wind 1 and 2, and the subsequent settlements and forfeitures, show that rising costs, supply-chain chaos, and unrealistic timelines have already forced foreign developers to abandon promises made to coastal states. That unraveling left New Jersey taxpayers and regulators picking up the pieces and reinforced the argument that energy projects should be economically viable on their own merits, not propped up by layered subsidies and political pressure.
On January 20, 2025, the President issued a memorandum pausing new federal offshore wind lease sales and ordering a comprehensive review of the ecological and economic impacts of these projects, a prudent move given the swirl of uncertainty and legitimate local objections. This pause isn’t a knee-jerk attack on technology; it’s a demand for accountability after years of fast-tracked approvals and foreign companies taking advantages of U.S. tax credits while leaving states with broken promises. The federal review process will, if done honestly, give coastal communities a seat at the table.
Environmental arguments have been tossed back and forth loudly, but the scientific record is messy enough to justify caution: NOAA has said projects may “adversely affect” whales and marine mammals even if they are unlikely to cause extinction, language that should give pause to anyone claiming offshore wind is risk-free. When federal agencies themselves flag potential harm, common-sense conservatives and environmentalists alike should insist on stronger, enforceable protections before permitting industrial-scale construction in sensitive coastal waters.
Why the alarm now? Unusual whale mortality events and increased vessel and survey activity have combined to create public anxiety that isn’t easily dismissed, and local fishermen and coastal towns report very real economic impacts and worries about tourism, seafood markets, and scenic values. These are not abstract metrics for economists; they represent family businesses, seasonal workers, and the rhythms of communities that have sustained New Jersey for generations. Policy that ignores them in the rush for a politically correct headline is neither conservative nor compassionate.
Devils are in the details: Atlantic Shores insists it remains committed to New Jersey, but companies walking away and multi-million-dollar settlements tell a different story about who bears the real risks when these projects go awry. New Jersey voters and officials should demand transparency on contract terms, guarantees, and contingency plans before any more construction or cable landfalls are approved, and should insist that state coffers and ratepayers are protected from foreign firms’ miscalculations.
Conservative patriots don’t oppose sensible environmental stewardship, but we reject ideological energy campaigns that put ideology ahead of families and livelihoods. Protect the whales with science-based measures, protect the shoreline economies with local consent and enforceable protections, and protect American energy security by supporting reliable, affordable domestic sources alongside any renewables that genuinely make economic sense without endless subsidies. The Jersey Coast deserves nothing less than an honest, accountable approach that puts people first.
