BrownGreer – in partnership with the Carbon Trust – has been selected as the team which will be designing and developing a regional fisheries mitigation program to provide fair and equitable financial compensation to the commercial and recreational for-hire fishing community from impacts from industrial offshore wind development along the Atlantic Coast.
According to the November 4th press release, 11 east coast states have been working collectively over the past 3 years – with engagement with the fishing community and offshore wind developers – to bring this initiative to fruition. “We are honored by our selection with the Carbon Trust to serve the fishing communities,” developers, and states participating in this innovative and historic initiative, said BrownGreer’s Orran Brown, Jr., while adding “As a neutral administrator, we are advocates not for any one stakeholder but for the best overall solutions, and we are excited to lend our experience and expertise to this critical program.”
“New Jersey’s fishing industry plays a vital role in the state’s economy and culture,” said New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette, adding “It is critical to ensure that fishers are appropriately compensated for economic losses associated with offshore wind development.”
Two committees are being established to provide advice and guidance from the states, fishing industry, and offshore wind developers, including a Design Oversight Committee (DOC) and For-Hire Committee (FHC). The primary members of the FHC representing the recreational fishing industry include New Jersey’s Bob Rush, as well as Rick Bellavance and Rom Whitaker, with Mike Cerchio acting as an alternate member. The primary member representing the states is Renee Zobel with New Jersey’s Joe Cimino functioning as alternate. According to the press release, the offshore wind industry will also have representation on the FHC, and these members are pending final determination by this caucus.
“The charter boat captains selected for the recreational for-hire committee bring decades of experience and a vision to compensation and mitigation that will benefit the broader recreational fishing community,” said Mike Waine, Atlantic Fisheries Policy Director of the American Sportfishing Association
The primary members of the DOC representing the commercial fishing industry are Hank Soule, Vince Balzano, Joe Gilbert, Roy Diehl, Sam Martin, and Spencer Headley, with alternate members including Beth Casoni, Jerry Leeman, Bonnie Brady, Lane Johnston and New Jersey’s Jeff Kaelin. The primary members representing the states include Cimino, Dan McKiernan, and Todd Janeski. DOC alternates include Erin Wilkinson, Julia Socrates, and Carrie Kennedy.
A Virginia-based claims resolution firm, BrownGreer has designed and managed some of the most significant claims administration programs in U.S. history including resolving nearly 400,000 claims in the $12 billion Deepwater Horizon settlement that included economic loss claims related to impacted commercial fishing, for-hire recreational fishing, and shoreside businesses.
