scholarly journals Balancing Sustainability Transitions through State-Led Participatory Processes: The Case of the Dutch North Sea Agreement

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 2297
Author(s):  
Susan de Koning ◽  
Nathalie Steins ◽  
Luc van Hoof
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Sustainability Transitions ◽  
Dutch Government ◽  
Governance System ◽  
Ecosystem Integrity ◽  
The North ◽  
The Government ◽  
Promising Development ◽  
Deliberative Governance

Following the Paris Agreement, investing in renewable energy production at sea is perceived as a promising development. In addition, food security challenges place increased focus on utilizing seas and oceans while biodiversity and ecosystem integrity must be safeguarded. In the North Sea, these three challenges are combined by the Dutch government in a deliberative governance agreement, involving key stakeholders, aimed at establishing a marine spatial allocation strategy. This paper outlines the development and first outcomes of this agreement. Using concepts of sustainability transitions and deliberative governance, we examined the role of the Dutch government in creating sustainability solutions through cross-sectoral participation processes. Based on our results, we argue that only the government can bring together parties that do not actively seek cooperation, like fisheries organizations and wind farm developers. This is in line with the government’s role to ensure compliance with international and national agreements, while also representing local (national) stakes. By opening up a discussion between parties that in the past were competing for marine space, the Dutch government has managed to make progress in obtaining transition goals. One of these transitions is the transition of the governance system itself, moving towards a more egalitarian style of policy making.

Regional Impacts of Offshore Windfarming on the Hydro- and Ecosystem Dynamics in the North Sea

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nils Christiansen ◽  
Ute Daewel ◽  
Corinna Schrum ◽  
Jeff Carpenter ◽  
Bughsin Djath ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Ecosystem Dynamics ◽  
Ocean Dynamics ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Tidal Mixing ◽  
Surface Boundary ◽  
The North ◽  
Wake Effects ◽  
The North Sea

<p>The production of renewable offshore wind energy in the North Sea increases rapidly, including development in ecologically significant regions. Recent studies identified implications like large-scale wind wake effects and mixing of the water column induced by wind turbines foundations. Depending on atmospheric stability, wind wakes imply changes in momentum flux and increased turbulence up to 70 km downstream, affecting the local conditions (e.g. wind speed, cloud development) near offshore wind farms. Atmospheric wake effects likely translate to the sea-surface boundary layer and hence influence vertical transport in the surface mixing layer. Changes in ocean stratification raise concerns about substantial consequences for local hydrodynamic and biogeochemical processes as well as for the marine ecosystem.<br>Using newly developed wind wake parametrisations together with the unstructured-grid model SCHISM and the biogeochemistry model ECOSMO, this study addresses windfarming impacts in the North Sea for future offshore wind farm scenarios. We focus on wind wake implications on ocean dynamics as well as on changes in tidal mixing fronts near the Dogger Bank and potential ecological consequences. At this, we create important knowledge on how the cross-scale wind farm impacts can be modelled suitably on the system scale.</p>

Nutrient emission reduction scenarios in the North Sea: An abatement cost and ecosystem integrity analysis

2007 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 776-792 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corinna Nunneri ◽  
Wilhelm Windhorst ◽  
R. Kerry Turner ◽  
Hermann Lenhart
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Emission Reduction ◽  
Abatement Cost ◽  
Ecosystem Integrity ◽  
The North ◽  
Nutrient Emission ◽  
The North Sea ◽  
Integrity Analysis

scholarly journals Long-term effects of an offshore wind farm in the North Sea on fish communities

2015 ◽  
Vol 528 ◽  
pp. 257-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Stenberg ◽  
JG Støttrup ◽  
M van Deurs ◽  
CW Berg ◽  
GE Dinesen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Fish Communities ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Offshore Wind Farm ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea

scholarly journals Towards the North Sea wind power revolution

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens N. Sørensen ◽  
Gunner C. Larsen
Keyword(s):  
Wind Power ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Wind Turbines ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Cost Model ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Meteorological Model ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea ◽  
The Cost

Abstract. The present work assesses the potential of a massive exploitation of offshore wind power in the North Sea by combining a meteorological model with a cost model that includes a bathymetric analysis of the water depth of the North Sea. The overall objective is to assess if the wind power in the North Sea can deliver the total consumption of electricity in Europe and to what prize as compared to conventional onshore wind energy. The meteorological model is based on the assumption that the exploited area is so large, that the wind field between the turbines is in equilibrium with the atmospheric boundary layer. This makes it possible to use momentum analysis to determine the mutual influence between the atmospheric boundary layer and the wind farm, with the wind farm represented by an average horizontal force component corresponding to the thrust. The cost model includes expressions for the most essential wind farm cost elements, such as costs of wind turbines, support structures, cables and electrical substations, as well as operation and maintenance as function of rotor size, interspatial distance between the turbines, and water depth. The numbers used in the cost model are based on previous experience from offshore wind farms, and is therefore somewhat conservative. The analysis shows that the lowest energy cost is obtained for a configuration of large wind turbines erected with an interspatial distance of about eight rotor diameters. A part of the analysis is devoted to assessing the relative costs of the various elements of the cost model in order to determine the components with the largest potential for reducing the cost price. As an overall finding, it is shown that the power demand of Europe, which is 0.4 TW or about 3500 TWh/year, can be fulfilled by exploiting an area of 190.000 km2, corresponding to about 1/3 of the North Sea, with 100.000 wind turbines of generator size 13 MW on water depths up to 45 m at a cost price of about 7.5 €cents/kWh.

scholarly journals A Spatial Analysis of the Potentials for Offshore Wind Farm Locations in the North Sea Region: Challenges and Opportunities

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gusatu ◽  
Yamu ◽  
Zuidema ◽  
Faaij
Keyword(s):  
Protected Areas ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Water Depth ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Wind Farms ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Offshore Wind Farms ◽  
The North ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
The North Sea

Over the last decade, the accelerated transition towards cleaner means of producing energy has been clearly prioritised by the European Union through large-scale planned deployment of wind farms in the North Sea. From a spatial planning perspective, this has not been a straight-forward process, due to substantial spatial conflicts with the traditional users of the sea, especially with fisheries and protected areas. In this article, we examine the availability of offshore space for wind farm deployment, from a transnational perspective, while taking into account different options for the management of the maritime area through four scenarios. We applied a mixed-method approach, combining expert knowledge and document analysis with the spatial visualisation of existing and future maritime spatial claims. Our calculations clearly indicate a low availability of suitable locations for offshore wind in the proximity of the shore and in shallow waters, even when considering its multi-use with fisheries and protected areas. However, the areas within 100 km from shore and with a water depth above –120 m attract greater opportunities for both single use (only offshore wind farms) and multi-use (mainly with fisheries), from an integrated planning perspective. On the other hand, the decrease of energy targets combined with sectoral planning result in clear limitations to suitable areas for offshore wind farms, indicating the necessity to consider areas with a water depth below –120 m and further than 100 km from shore. Therefore, despite the increased costs of maintenance and design adaptation, the multi-use of space can be a solution for more sustainable, stakeholder-engaged and cost-effective options in the energy deployment process. This paper identifies potential pathways, as well as challenges and opportunities for future offshore space management with the aim of achieving the 2050 renewable energy targets.

Rapid macrobenthic recovery after dredging activities in an offshore wind farm in the Belgian part of the North Sea

Hydrobiologia ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 756 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Delphine A. Coates ◽  
Gert van Hoey ◽  
Liesbet Colson ◽  
Magda Vincx ◽  
Jan Vanaverbeke
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Offshore Wind Farm ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea

The Value and Distribution of the Benefits of North Sea Oil and Gas, 1970—1985

1977 ◽  
Vol 82 ◽  
pp. 41-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. A. B. Page
Keyword(s):  
Exchange Rate ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Balance Of Payments ◽  
Absolute Size ◽  
Industrial Countries ◽  
The North ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
The Exchange Rate ◽  
The Government

Oil and gas from the North Sea will make the United Kingdom a net exporter of energy in the 1980s and supply a substantial portion of its needs through the 1990s. In value terms, the benefits are principally to the balance of payments and government revenue. The former is improved slightly relative to the pre-oil price rise position, but significantly compared with either the present balance or that of other industrial countries. The absolute size of these benefits and the share of the government in the total are extremely sensitive to the assumptions made about changes in the exchange rate, including those which result from the improvement in the balance of payments. Many decisions about the distribution of the benefits are already being taken, for example in policies for the energy sector and the exchange rate. It is therefore too late to plan to allocate all the benefits to a single purpose, and it may be undesirable to do so.

scholarly journals Spatial and temporal analysis of cumulative environmental effects of offshore wind farms in the North Sea basin

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Florentina Gușatu ◽  
Stefano Menegon ◽  
Daniel Depellegrin ◽  
Christian Zuidema ◽  
André Faaij ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Temporal Analysis ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
The North ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
The North Sea

AbstractThe North Sea basin is one of the busiest maritime areas globally with a considerable number of anthropogenic pressures impacting the functioning of the marine ecosystem. Due to growing EU ambitions for the deployment of large offshore wind farm projects (OWF), as part of the 2050 renewable energy roadmap, there is a key need for a holistic understanding of OWF potential impacts on the marine ecosystem. We propose a holistic Cumulative Effect Assessment methodology, applied using a geo-spatial open-source software, to assess impacts of OWF related pressures on selected seabed habitats, fish, seabird and mammal species. We take into account pressures specific to the three OWF development phases, spanning 1999–2050, for the entire North Sea basin. Our results underline 2022 as the peak year of cumulative impacts for the approved OWFs, followed by a considerable increase in potential impacts of the planned 212GWs, by 2050. The spatio-temporal analysis of the OWF environmental impacts presents the shift between highly impacted areas over the studied timeline and distinguishes between concentrated areas of high impacts (S–E of UK) and dispersed areas of high impacts (Germany). Our results can inform decision-makers and the OWF industry in a joint effort to mitigate the environmental impacts of future large OWF developments.

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