The Crown Estate has doubled its commitment to ensure offshore wind’s expansion and a thriving marine environment go hand-in-hand.
The nation is ramping up its homegrown energy independence while paving the way to Net Zero with huge investments in renewables.
And the vast coastal resource governed by the organisation is seen as key.
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To support it, since the launch of the 海角视频 Government’s British Energy Security Strategy - which raises ambitions for offshore wind generation to achieve up to 50GW by 2030 alongside commitments to environmental restoration - The Crown Estate has committed a further £25 million into its Offshore Wind Evidence and Change Programme, bringing the total investment intent up to £50 million.
It is gathering and harnessing the necessary data and evidence to propel forward the growth of 海角视频 offshore wind at pace, while maintaining clean, healthy, productive and biologically diverse seas.
The programme is being delivered in partnership with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, working closely with Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland government bodies, regulators, NGOs and a broad range of industry representatives.
Dan Labbad, chief executive of The Crown Estate, said: “As the need to accelerate offshore wind deployment ramps up, restoring our natural environment has never been more important. We are committed to safeguarding the marine environment whilst shaping, innovating, informing and enabling the development of offshore wind for the long-term benefit of the nation. By doubling our investment in the Offshore Wind and Evidence programme, we can continue to provide world class data and evidence to support both government and the industry in making the best decisions to unlock the pathway to net zero, in harmony with healthy, biodiverse seas.”
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The Crown Estate manages the seabed, and half the foreshore, around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, playing a key role in enabling the 海角视频’s offshore wind industry, as well as helping to facilitate the development of sectors such as cables, pipelines, carbon capture use and storage and marine aggregates.
There are 23 projects in the current portfolio representing £33 million of funding - £22 million from The Crown Estate's core investment fund, and £11 million of co-funding or in-kind contributions. The projects are helping to find space in a busy seabed through spatial co-ordination and co-location; and are designed to inform policy and regulation to enable a more integrated design of wind farms and the natural environment.
It includes potential environmental compensatory measures to address environmental impacts.
Mr Labbad said the additional funding will be used to deliver research and data projects that support the acceleration of offshore wind deployment including projects that address priority bird, marine mammal and seabed habitat research gaps now identified.
There will also be a renewed focus on floating offshore wind and cable infrastructure. In direct response to the British Energy Security Strategy, alongside the focus on strategic compensation, the programme will support the work of the government’s new Marine Recovery Fund and implementation of nature-based design standards.
Energy Minister Greg Hands said: “Delivering clean, affordable and homegrown energy is an urgent priority for this government as we made clear in the British Energy Security Strategy.
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“This investment will help support that, boosting our status as an offshore wind superpower while protecting our iconic island coastline.”
The programme links in closely with the 海角视频 Government’s Marine Spatial Prioritisation Programme which is gathering further data and building evidence; as well as a number of other related industry initiatives, such as those led by Renewable 海角视频, the Offshore Wind Industry Council and the Seabed User and Developer Group.
Environment Minister Rebecca Pow said: “Our marine environment is a vital asset in developing a clean, affordable and secure energy supply here in the 海角视频.
“Data and evidence is integral to achieving this, and I’m delighted funding is in place for further research and data projects that will accelerate progress towards offshore wind deployment while continuing to meet our commitments on ocean recovery.”
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Key Crown Estate milestones in offshore wind's ecological development:
Strategic East Coast Grid Spatial Study
This project was designed to help optimise the sustainable use of the seabed for renewables while protecting the environment and delivering economic benefits. It looked at options for better co-ordination, land and sea infrastructure and connections into the national power grid. The report, published in April 2021, brought spatial considerations into the foreground and contributed to the Offshore Transmission Network Review, informing policy development specifically around the increasing importance of considering the marine spatial context for future development activity.
Launch of the Offshore Wind Environmental Evidence Register
The first publicly accessible 海角视频-wide register of evidence gaps and relevant research projects across four key areas – the seabed, marine mammals, seabirds and fish. It was developed by the Government’s Joint Nature Conservation Committee with the support of Defra and The Crown Estate. The register highlights priority evidence gaps, increases understanding of the current breadth and scope of the research field and assists in targeting research towards the most important priorities. It also helps to reduce project duplication, foster collaboration and disseminate project findings.
Improving seabird impact assessments
Published in summer 2021, this project was designed to develop a legal basis to support the development of a methodology, which will ensure that cumulative assessments of the impact of built and future wind farms on seabirds are as realistic as possible. This will help to avoid overestimates which could hamper future development. The outcomes can help to improve planning and decision making by creating greater consensus on how cumulative impacts on seabirds should be assessed. The outcomes were reflected in the Draft National Policy Statement for Renewable Energy Infrastructure (EN-3), published for consultation by BEIS in September 2021, and within published development consent orders. Through supporting an improved methodology for cumulative seabird impact assessments, this project is anticipated to have a significant impact in reducing the consenting risk of future projects and enabling offshore wind in areas where there is already significant development and consented capacity.
Launch of the ECOWind programme
The Ecological Consequences of Offshore Wind research programme launched in August 2021 with the aim to address the critical gap in understanding how marine ecosystems will respond to the continued growth of offshore wind. The four year programme, led by the Natural Environment Research Council, will fund leading edge research into how offshore wind farms affect the marine environment alongside other growing pressures on 海角视频 ecosystems including climate change and human activities such as fishing. The findings will inform key decision-makers in the management of 海角视频 waters to help achieve the 海角视频’s commitment to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 whilst ensuring net environmental gain and marine environmental restoration. ECOWind will engage the academic community, helping to develop long-term successful relationships between researchers, government, and industry.
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Strategic targets for net gain
Published in October 2021, this project identified a robust set of recommended strategic targets for marine net gain (MNG), which have strong consensus and agreement from industry, regulators and conservation bodies. The targets set a clear direction for how developers could contribute towards MNG to restore and improve marine and intertidal environments. The targets provide a building block for Defra’s ongoing work through the Offshore Wind Enabling Actions Programme (OWEAP) to develop policy for MNG and its implementation.
£12million invested in new research to help protect the 海角视频 marine environment
In January 2022, The Crown Estate partnered with Natural England, Scottish Government and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds to launch three significant research projects to enable the coexistence of offshore wind farms with a thriving marine environment. They will explore a wide range of environmental issues, identify evidence-gaps and inform how we can collectively implement positive change by improving understanding amongst key decision-makers of how offshore wind deployment could affect marine habitats and wildlife in combination with other activities.
Future Offshore Wind Scenarios
In April, the Future Offshore Wind Scenarios report was published, providing the first illustrative framework for how the 海角视频 could deploy sufficient offshore wind to meet net zero. The study - commissioned by the BEIS, The Crown Estate and Crown Estate Scotland - will support decision-making around future offshore wind development through illustrating the complex factors that must be balanced within the marine environment including consideration of the cost of energy. These illustrative spatial scenarios investigate the potential implications for future relative deployment costs and offshore wind technology choice, in interaction with the environment, other infrastructure, and marine industries such as shipping and fishing. FOWS is a significant addition to the evidence base and insights gained will inform decisions about the 海角视频’s offshore energy future including the 海角视频 Government’s Marine Spatial Prioritisation Programme which is gathering further data and building evidence, using this study as an important reference point.
North Sea Net Gain
An international collaboration led by The Crown Estate in partnership with the Dutch-led Rich North Sea programme to provide further evidence on how benthic biodiversity is distributed across the North Sea and around the 海角视频 into one dataset. Published in May, it has produced new modelled data and a publicly accessible app to help ensure that decisions around offshore wind deployment can be made using the most comprehensive information. Through a thorough data mining process, detailed maps were produced of habitats and distributions of key benthic species in the North Sea. The study aims to ensure that decisions on the next generation of offshore wind farms will be based on the most comprehensive information and will bring biodiversity net gain.
Air defence concept demonstration trials
This project is helping to identify technical mitigations to ensure offshore wind projects can co-exist alongside air defence radar systems. It is being delivered by the Ministry of Defence, the Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC), The Crown Estate and BEIS. A major project milestone occurred in September 2021 with the launch of the Air Defence and Offshore Wind Strategy and Implementation Plan, providing an update on progress and highlighting the importance of strategic collaboration to address the challenge of co-location. It also identified specific surveillance technology that could be introduced to radar systems to more accurately distinguish wind turbines from aircraft.