RPSB Report: Powering Healthy Seas - Accelerating Nature Positive Offshore WindA new report by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) brings together experts in conservation and wind energy to look at how the UK can live up to its offshore wind commitments and protect our natural world. The report offers hope that with the right frameworks and political will, we can find ways to generate renewable energy at sea that will help us tackle the climate and nature emergencies together.https://offshore-coalition.eu/publications/rpsb-report-powering-healthy-seas-accelerating-nature-positive-offshore-windhttps://offshore-coalition.eu/@@site-logo/logo.png
A new report by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) brings together experts in conservation and wind energy to look at how the UK can live up to its offshore wind commitments and protect our natural world. The report offers hope that with the right frameworks and political will, we can find ways to generate renewable energy at sea that will help us tackle the climate and nature emergencies together.
9/30/22
Through a collaboration of environmental NGOs and the offshore wind sector, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) has set out an ambitious but pragmatic approach placing offshore wind within a wider context of marine management that is good for nature, climate and people. This collaboration is summarised in the report ‘Powering Healthy Seas: Accelerating Nature Positive Offshore Wind’, where RSPB stresses the need for a robust evidence base, spatial marine plans, adaptive management, and the value of strategic compensation. This is placed within the wider context of marine ecosystem resilience, through fisheries management, effect marine protected areas and colony biosecurity programmes.
Crucially, the approach outlined in this report recognises offshore wind as a key driver to achieve positive change and calls for Nature Positive offshore wind to lead the way in government action. A true net zero will not be possible without healthy ecosystems as our ally. Offshore wind can be the catalyst for this change.
The report looks at the need for:
A robust ecological evidence base to inform environmentally conscious siting of new offshore windfarms.
Country-level marine plans to provide clarity to marine users.
Impact assessments that identify cumulative impacts of multiple developments
Innovative industry standards, supported by government policy
Adaptive management techniques that offer flexibility in the face of changing conditions or new information
Strategic compensation, where necessary, to ensure ecological impacts are appropriately addressed.
A marine net gain system to help drive nature recovery and improvement.
