A labor pool is building up slowly around an emerging offshore wind industry on the eastern U.S. coast, a regional labor leader said.

Deepwater Wind said it was teaming up with regional labor and trade councils in an effort to build a local offshore wind industry. If approved by regulators, it said its Deepwater ONE wind farm off the Long Island coast could create hundreds of jobs. Local hiring could begin as early as next year.

"There is an opportunity associated with offshore wind energy to safeguard our environment and, at the same time, bring hundreds of jobs to our region," said John Durso, president of the Long Island Federation of Labor, said in a statement Tuesday.

Deepwater Wind said it wants to build a 200-megawatt wind farm off the Long Island coast. Its proposal is under review by the Long Island Power Authority. If approved, commercial operations could begin within the next three years.

The Rhode Island government signed off on environmental permits for what will become the nation's first offshore wind farm in May, Deepwater Wind's Block Island project.

The wind farm will generate enough power to meet the annual energy demands of more than 17,000 households. Construction begins in full swing next year.