Three environmental organizations seeking to block an offshore wind farm development have filed an appeal of a state Department of Environmental Protection decision.

Save Long Beach Island, Protect Our Coast NJ and Defend Brigantine Beach are challenging a finding by DEP that plans for Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind’s farm were consistent with the state’s coastal management regulations.

In the complaint filed with the state Appellate Division, the three organizations claim that Atlantic Shores’ wind farm turbines will crush and destroy the seabed, interfere with the migration of endangered whale species, cause loss of native species and do economic harm to the state’s prime fishing grounds and tourist regions.

The groups also claim that the DEP approval is inconsistent with the federal environmental impact statement.

On April 18 a Mercer County Superior Court judge dismissed a lawsuit by eight New Jersey Shore communities asking for an independent review of whether the Atlantic Shores project violates coastal regulations.

The court ruled that the eight communities had no standing to bring the action. It was a decision that one litigant in the current appeal calls a “bewildering dismissal.”

One week after the Mercer County decision, the appeal by the environmental groups was filed, on April 26. The action, like the one that was dismissed, challenges the coastal zone management consistency certification for Atlantic Shores.

The DEP has 30 days to respond to the appeal. If the process follows a standard time line, it is likely that arguments might not be heard until early 2025.

Contact the reporter, Vince Conti, at vconti@cmcherald.com.