Abstract
In Japan, which has a wide EEZ, there are high expectations for the potential of MRE. The spread of MRE may produce various effects such as eliminating dependence on other countries for energy supply and revitalizing local economies through business entry. On the other hand, consensus building with various stakeholders at the time of project development is considered a major obstacle to dissemination. In order to promote commercialization of the MRE development, not only the evaluation of economic feasibility but also various aspects such as environmental conservation and coexistence with other industries should be integrated and evaluated. A rational system should be established to select suitable sites that all stakeholders can be convinced. In this study, especially on offshore wind power generation, existing studies on selecting suitable sites in consideration of economic, environmental, and social aspects were investigated as well as the related efforts of each country to review the current status of marine spatial planning and extract issues for MRE deployment in Japan. A preliminary economic evaluation for offshore wind power generation around Japan was also carried out.
Maritime Spatial Planning supported by systematic site selection: Applying Marxan for offshore wind power in the western Baltic Sea
