Judge Orders US Defense Department to Resume Review of Wind Energy Projects
For the second time during the current Trump administration, a federal court judge has found the administration is violating U.S. administrative law in its efforts to stop the wind energy sector. On Thursday, August 6, Judge Karin Immergut of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon issued a preliminary injunction and instructed the Pentagon to resume its reviews of wind energy project applications.
Earlier in the week, after a hearing, the judge had said she was inclined to issue the order to restart the reviews. Lawyers for the Defense Department reportedly said the reviews were proceeding, but when she asked for a specific example, they did not name a single project. While the decision largely impacts onshore wind energy projects, it is the second time this year that a judge has said the administration cannot arbitrarily suspend the review of wind energy projects.
Shortly after returning to the White House in January 2025, Donald Trump signed an executive order directing a review of the entire process for permitting wind energy projects. He refers to them as “wind mills” and insists they are not economically sound projects, as well as objecting to them as “ugly.”
The administration has systematically taken steps to stop the development of wind energy projects, and now is buying back leases after having failed in the courts. The executive order directing the review was rejected by the courts, which said it was a violation of administrative regulations. The Trump administration also issued stop-work orders on the under-construction offshore projects, citing national security concerns. Five separate courts issued preliminary injunctions letting the projects continue work.
In May 2026, a coalition of environmental groups and others filed suit in Oregon challenging the Department of Defense’s reported suspension of all reviews. Judge Immergut found for these groups and on Thursday, August 6, issued a preliminary injunction ordering the Defense Department to resume the reviews. It was further ordered that it must supply updates every 30 days on the progress.
The suit highlighted a 2011 act of Congress that stipulates the review process for energy projects contained in the Ike Skelton National Defense Authorization Act. The Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Defense are given oversight to review the proposed construction of a structure over 200 feet above ground level, which includes utility-scale wind turbines. They have 75 days under the law to conduct a preliminary review and render an opinion. If a risk is identified, they must start mitigation discussions, and those can continue for an additional 90 days.
According to the court, before August 2025, DoD evaluated wind energy project applications in accordance with the statutes and regulations and adhered to a predictable timeline for its review. It then slowed the process, eventually canceling scheduled mitigation discussions, and by May 2026, the court found the incremental slowdown had reached a standstill. DoD issued interim guidance to reassess its internal review process for energy projects that it said were “causing impactful Doppler interference.”
Defense officials claimed the pause was required because the growing use of drones in overseas conflicts had revealed new threats. They asked the court to dismiss the complaint, saying it was outweighed by national security concerns.
The judge told the Justice Department lawyers that if DoD wanted to alter the statutory requirements, it could go to Congress and ask for the change. However, the court found that DoD was not following the Congressionally mandated requirements and ordered it to resume the reviews following the prescribed requirements.
that matters most
Get the latest maritime news delivered to your inbox daily.
Another judge earlier this year issued a similar ruling after the administration broadly stopped reviews, saying the process for permitting was being accessed. In that case, as in this case, the judge found the federal administrative regulations did not give the administration the ability to have an open-ended review. They said applicants were entitled under the law to timely reviews.
Reports said the DoD delay was impacting more than 155 onshore wind projects that have filed for permits.
