The Fulton Fish Market Cooperative hosted a July 15 rally at its Hunts Point facility in the Bronx to protest the Empire Wind energy project, now under construction around traditional fishing grounds off New York.

“Offshore wind is not a supplement to our industry, it is a direct replacement,” Nicole Ackerina, CEO of the Fulton cooperative, said in a joint statement after the rally with union workers, commercial fishermen from New York and New Jersey, and coastal advocates.

“These projects will eliminate access to vital fishing grounds, destabilize our seafood infrastructure, and trade American jobs for short-term foreign-backed construction contracts.”

Fulton employs 1,200 full-time workers, including 500 Bronx residents, most of them union members, said Ackerina. 

“Our industry feeds America. NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) reported that in 2022, New York’s seafood industry supported nearly 70,000 jobs and over $9.2 billion in sales. New Jersey supported more than 72,000 jobs and $12.9 billion in sales. This is not expendable.”

The 814-megawatt rated Empire Wind project was briefly suspended in April, as the Trump administration acted on early promises to stop offshore wind projects. To the dismay of project opponents, Norway-based energy developer Equinor was allowed to resume work a month later toward building 54 turbines near the New York Harbor shipping approaches.

The turnaround came after negotiations by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration, Equinor and the Trump administration that yielded an agreement for New York to in turn cooperate on siting natural gas pipelines from Pennsylvania to Northeast states.

The Fulton event was held by the co-op, and brought together advocates “to call on President Donald J. Trump to stop Empire Wind from proceeding off Long Island’s shores,” according to the statement from organizers.

Warren Kremin, a co-op shareholder and principal at Blue Ribbon Fish, said there’s a lack of transparency and scientific justification behind the federal permitting of Empire Wind. Kremin echoed longstanding complaints from fishermen, who say past federal wind energy permitting contrasted to the management regime that fishermen must work under.

“Where is the science? We’re not asking for anything unreasonable, but before we lose all these jobs, where is the data?” said Keremin. “When the government doesn’t have the data, they shut down a fishery in the name of conservation and sustainability. This is a major issue that bridges both sides of the aisle. We need the Trump administration to look into this deeply, because the trickle-down effect of this project could be severe for our industry.”

Rose Willis, a member of the Fishermen’s Dock Cooperative in Point Pleasant Beach, N.J.,  said fish caught in the New York Bight support a regional network of jobs

“When my husband comes in from a trip, I’m the one catching his lines. Behind every fish is a chain of people working hard to feed this country,” said Willis. “When a boat comes in, it’s not just the captain and crew. It’s the dock workers, the guys making the ice, the truckers who haul the catch to other states or right here to Fulton.”

“It’s the people who filet it, pack it, sell it to restaurants, or the folks who sell it again in local markets. It’s the net builders, the gear shops, everyone who keeps this engine going. This isn’t just an industry, it’s a community that feeds people.”

The rally followed the Fulton Market’s recent entry into a federal lawsuit with other opposition groups, challenging the U.S. Department of Interior and Equinor over the project.

“Empire Wind will put thousands of American jobs at risk, including right here at the Market, where families have worked for generations to feed this country. These are the real union jobs that matter,” said Robin Shaffer, president of the group Protect Our Coast NJ. “We’re gathered here today in the heart of America’s largest fish market with one united message for President Trump: Stop Empire Wind. Stop all offshore wind.”