Delaware has achieved a unique status as it works toward developing what could be the nation's first offshore wind farm.
Official says Delaware has become the first state granted authority for enforcing and implementing air quality permits along its outer continental shelf under the federal Clean Air Act. Previously, only a few local districts in California had been delegated such authority by the Environmental Protection Agency.
The first project that Delaware will oversee is permitting for a tower that will gather weather data for the wind farm project. Regulations require that any air emissions from vessels involved in the tower's construction and operation will be controlled to the same level as if they occurred on land.
