Offshore Wind Composite Siting Exclusions Reference Scenario

This dataset consolidates criteria that restrict the siting of wind energy installations, an update from Zuckerman et al. (2023). The "Reference" scenario excludes areas from wind energy development due to legal or administrative restrictions (e.g., aquaculture, coastal critical habitat), existing infrastructure (e.g., shipping lanes, oil platforms), and technical constraints (e.g., bathymetry). It also applies best management practices such as known proposed protected areas. For citation, please use: Zuckerman, Gabriel R., Anthony Lopez, Travis Williams, Rebecca Green, and Grant Buster. 2023. Impacts of Siting Considerations on Offshore Wind Technical Potential in the United States. Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. NREL/TP-6A20- 85088. https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy23osti/85088.pdf. Within this dataset, floating point values range from 0 to 1, representing the percentage of each grid cell available for development (e.g., a value of 0.8 indicates 80% availability).