Data and surveys
Site and Environmental Surveys and data
Since Empire Wind was awarded an offshore wind lease in 2017, site and environmental data surveys have been taking place. These data are used to support federal and state permitting and environmental reviews. Data will continue to be collected to meet requirements associated with project approval as well as the regional fisheries and wildlife research. Data will be shared according to requirements set by the NYSERDA OREC PSA for Empire Wind 1.
As per federal and state guidelines, data have been or will be collected to address the the areas of interest listed below.
Environmental Surveys and Data
Air Quality
Empire Wind will begin air quality tests and monthly air emissions tests during the construction of the project. Interested parties can submit a data sharing request to Empire Wind as indicated below.
Avian and Bat
Avian
Digital aerial wildlife surveys began in 2017.
Reports from the 2017, 2018, 2019 digital aerial wildlife surveys over the Empire Wind lease area can be accessed here.
Data from the 2017, 2018, and 2019 digital aerial wildlife surveys over the Empire Wind Lease Area are accessible at Ocean Biodiversity Information System Spatial Ecological Analysis of Megavertebrate Populations (OBIS-SEAMAP) at the links below.
2017-2018 Digital Aerial Wildlife Survey Data on OBIS-SEAMAP
2019 Digital Aerial Wildlife Survey Data on OBIS-SEAMAP
Bats
Acoustic bat detections were collected in 2018 from a survey vessel. The report is available as part of the Empire Wind COP. Data are available on NABat at the links below.
Mobile acoustic bat survey on vessel in OCS-A 0512 Lease Area between June 4, 2018 and November 9, 2018 (project 6375).
Stationary acoustic bat survey at South Brooklyn Marine Terminal between July 28, 2023 and August 18, 2023 (project 6392).
Sharks and Rays
Reports and Data:
Digital aerial wildlife surveys occurred 2017, 2018, and 2019. Reports and data can be found here.
Benthic
Benthic Resource Characterization Reports (Appendix T of Empire Wind Construction and Operations Plan)
The following reports are from the Empire Wind Benthic Sampling Plan New York State Waters:
2023 Empire Wind Pre-Construction Benthic Monitoring Survey Report New York State Waters
2023 Empire Wind Pre-Construction Benthic Monitoring Survey Report Appendices New York State Waters
The following reports are from the Empire Wind Fisheries and Benthic Monitoring Plan scope:
2024 Pre-Construction Benthic Monitoring Survey Report – Waters outside the state waters boundary
Fisheries
Reports:
Atlantic Sturgeon telemetry detections in Empire Wind Lease Area lead by Stony Brook University collected 2016-2018 Ingram, E.C., Cerrato, R.M., Dunton, K.J. et al. Endangered Atlantic Sturgeon in the New York Wind Energy Area: implications of future development in an offshore wind energy site. Sci Rep 9, 12432 (2019)
The following reports are from the Empire Wind Fisheries and Benthic Monitoring Plan
2023 Empire Wind Scallop Monitoring Survey Annual Report
2023 Empire Wind Acoustic Telemetry Study Annual Report
2024 Acoustic Telemetry Report
2024 Empire Squid Monitoring Survey Annual Report
2024 Empire Wind Scallop Monitoring Survey Annual Report
2025 Empire Wind Scallop Monitoring Survey Annual Report
2025 Acoustic Telemetry Report
2025 Empire Squid Monitoring Survey Annual Report
Data:
Atlantic Sturgeon telemetry detections in Empire Wind Lease Area lead by Stony Brook University collected 2016-2018. Atlantic Sturgeon telemetry detections used in the study are archived and publicly viewable on the Harvard Dataverse website: https://dataverse.harvard.edu. The complete environmental datasets analyzed during the study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request. Project information is also available at https://matos.asascience.com/project/detail/170
Acoustic telemetry data from Empire Wind Fisheries and Benthic Monitoring Plan scope is accessible at Mid-Atlantic Telemetry Observing System (MATOS; Project Code – MUEMPIRE, https://matos.asascience.com/project/detail/307).
Marine Mammals
Near real-time passive acoustic monitoring buoys were placed in the Empire Wind lease area by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute. Data began to be collected in 2016.
Information that is collected from the project is publicly available at whalesofnewyork.wcs.org and dcs.whoi.edu .
It is also available to the public as part of an exhibit kiosk located at WCS’s New York Aquarium, located in Coney Island New York.
Digital aerial wildlife surveys occurred 2017, 2018, and 2019 and collected marine mammal data. Reports and data from that survey can be found here.
Sea Turtles
Digital aerial wildlife surveys occurred 2017, 2018, and 2019. Reports and data from that survey can be found here.
Metocean
Metocean buoys and moorings were deployed in the Empire Wind lease area from 2018- 2020.
Map view and data visualization is available here through our partnership with MARACOOS.
Data are available here.
A presentation of how to access the data is available here.
Regional Research for Monitoring of Key Commercial Fish Stocks and Wildlife of Conservation Concern
Empire Wind 1 has developed agreements with two regional non-profit entities to procure and manage the required regional research activities: the Regional Wildlife Science Collaborative for Offshore Wind RWSC and ROSA. RWSC and ROSA were selected because these entities are designed to leverage subject matter experts, and they are aligned with NYSERDA’s commitment to a regional approach to research gap identification and research prioritization.
Fisheries Regional Research
In November 2024, ROSA released its first Regional Request for Proposals for Advancing Regional Solutions for Fisheries and Offshore Wind focused on the following topics:
- Supporting Fisheries Access
- Understanding Potential Offshore Wind Impacts to Larval Fish
- Fisheries Monitoring: Data Integration, Evaluation, & Analysis
Project selections were made in June 2025. Please see ROSA Regional Request for Proposals for more.
Wildlife Regional Research
In February 2025, RWSC released a Request for Proposals. The RWSC RFP focuses on the following areas:
- Vulnerability Assessment and power analyses to support marine bird displacement study design
- Potential effects from offshore wind on hydrodynamics and ecology
Environmental Data Sharing Requests
Interested parties can submit a data sharing request to Audrey Bard AUDB@equinor.com for site and environmental information not provided in the above links.