NCCOS Assessment: A Wind Energy Area Siting Analysis for the Oregon Call Areas, 2014-11-24 to 2024-02-14 (NCEI Accession 0306723)

This data collection contains geospatial data supporting the suitability analysis for Wind Energy Areas (WEAs) within Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) Oregon Call Areas. The dataset includes:
1. Oregon Hexagonal (Hex) Grid: These data depict the 4.05 hectare (10 acre) hexagonal grid used within the NCCOS suitability analysis for siting wind energy areas within BOEM’s Oregon Call Areas. This layer only covers the BOEM Call Areas.
2. Oregon Constraints Suitability Submodel: Incorporates Department of Defense exclusion areas and U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Coast Port Access Route Study (PAC-PARS) fairway zones, representing conflicts with offshore wind development.
3. Oregon Industry and Operations Suitability Submodel: Based on six data layers covering industry and operations. The geometric mean was used to calculate suitability scores, ensuring equal importance across all variables.
4. Oregon Natural Resources Suitability Submodel: Based on fourteen data layers covering natural resources. The geometric mean was used to calculate suitability scores, ensuring equal importance across all variables.
5. Oregon Fisheries Suitability Submodel: Based on nine data layers covering fisheries. The geometric mean was used to calculate suitability scores, ensuring equal importance across all variables.
6. Oregon Wind Suitability Submodel: The Levelized Cost of Energy for 2027 data layer was used to create the wind suitability submodel. The geometric mean was used to calculate suitability scores, ensuring equal importance across all variables.
7. Oregon Final Suitability: Based on thirty data layers covering constraints, industry operations, natural resources, fisheries, and wind logistics. The geometric mean was used to calculate suitability scores, ensuring equal importance across all variables. Grid cells with scores near 0 indicate low suitability, while scores near 1 represent high suitability relative to other grid cells.
8. Oregon High-High Clusters: These data depict the high-high clusters from the NCCOS relative suitability modeling results for BOEM’s Oregon Call Areas. This layer only covers the BOEM Oregon Call Areas.
9. Oregon Wind Energy Areas (aliquots and outlines): BOEM aliquots that overlapped with High-High clusters were selected, and areas less than 55,000 acres were removed, resulting in a total of 617 aliquots being selected. Additional aliquots were included that were fully encircled by the selected aliquots, including four aliquots in the Coos Bay WEA totaling 1,420 acres, and two aliquots in the Brookings WEA totaling 710 acres. The BOEM aliquots within the final Wind Energy Areas were dissolved to create the final Wind Energy Area boundaries.
10. Oregon Combined Suitability - Marine Birds: Incorporates marine bird density and vulnerability metrics, using predicted seasonal density data and weighted sensitivity values to assess potential impacts.
11. Oregon Combined Suitability - NMFS Habitats: These data depict the relative suitability of the NMFS habitat combined data layer. Includes essential fish habitat conservation areas, rocky reef habitats, and deep-sea coral areas, highlighting ecological considerations. This layer only covers the BOEM Oregon Call Areas.
12. Oregon Combined Suitability - NMFS and ODFW Fisheries: Combines data from both NMFS and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) on commercial and recreational fisheries, including trawl fisheries, to ensure spatial planning accounts for fisheries' operational needs.
13. Oregon Combined Suitability - NMFS Protected Species: These data depict the relative suitability of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) protected species combined data layer. Represents protected species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), including Leatherback Sea turtles, Southern Resident killer whales, and Blue whales, to assess compatibility with offshore wind development. This layer only covers the BOEM Oregon Call Areas.
14. Oregon Combined Suitability - NMFS Scientific Surveys: Maps the geographic footprint of NMFS’ scientific survey operations to avoid conflicts with ongoing activities.
The archive also includes the BOEM Oregon Call Area Boundary layer delineating the extent of BOEM’s Oregon Call Areas, providing spatial context for all included data layers.