• The National Environmental Policy Act (1969), the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (1918), and the Endangered Species Act (1973) are the primary federal laws protecting birds in the context of U.S. offshore wind energy development. • These laws and their implementing regulations lead to protections for birds by prohibiting physical injury, disturbance, transport, capture, and trade of certain species (i.e., “take“), safeguarding key habitats, and establishing mandatory procedures for assessing and reducing potential effects on birds and other wildlife from human activities. • The U.S. is also party to a suite of international agreements, like the North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI), which promote international cooperation to protect migratory bird species and/or their critical habitats. However, these agreements are not legally enforceable, nor are they explicitly considered in the U.S. offshore wind energy regulatory context. For more detailed information and scientific citations, please see the full FAQ document linked below.

• “Take” is a legal concept used in federal wildlife protection laws to describe actions that injure, kill, or otherwise negatively impact protected species, including birds. • The Endangered Species Act (ESA) defines take as “to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct.” • The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) prohibits take but does not have a formal definition of take or consultation and permitting process to authorize incidental (i.e., unintentional) take. • Federal entities must assess whether their own activities, or those of developers, could result in take under the ESA. Developers must work with federal agencies to acquire authorizations if needed, and implement monitoring and measures to avoid, reduce, and offset potential impacts to protected species. Though not required, developers are encouraged to coordinate with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to identify and minimize risks to migratory birds under the MBTA. For more detailed information and scientific citations, please see the full FAQ document linked below.

• Offshore wind developers must abide by federal laws that protect birds (see What federal environmental laws and international agreements protect birds?). The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and the Endangered Species Act (ESA) are foundational to the permits, approvals, and authorizations required for developments in federal waters (typically defined as ocean waters more than three nautical miles from the U.S. coastline). • At the federal level, offshore wind developers must seek approval from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management for their Construction and Operation Plan during the permitting process as part of NEPA. This process also includes consultation with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under the ESA that results in an Incidental Take Statement. • At the state level, approvals and authorizations vary but may include compliance with state protected species and habitat legislation for parts of offshore developments located in state waters (e.g., underwater cabling that brings electricity to shore) and at onshore project facilities such as grid interconnection infrastructure. When projects are located entirely in federal waters, state protections can apply through the Coastal Zone Management Act federal consistency review if there are reasonably foreseeable coastal effects on the state. For more detailed information and scientific citations, please see the full FAQ document linked below.