Renewable energy from wind and wave power can make a large contribution to meeting the energy needs of the UK and the UK Government wants 35 giga watts of offshore wind and 2 giga watts each of tidal and wave energy by 2020, with further substantial increases planned for 2050.
Marine Renewable Energy aims to go beyond simple environmental impact statements and to predict the impact of large offshore wind farms, wave and tidal energy devices on the environment.
See story on LWEC website.
What will the activity do?
The interaction between the environment and devices that extract wave and tidal energy is complex and any negative impacts must be weighed against benefits to the environment.
The overall aim of the research programme is to understand the environmental benefits and risks of scaling up marine renewable energy schemes on the quality of marine bioresources and biophysical dynamics of open coasts.
The programme will
Who will benefit?
Government
The information will be used by policy makers to balance the benefits of marine renewable energy with the need to protect the marine environment and meet the requirements of the EU Marine Strategy Directive, for example, setting up Marine Protected Areas.
The information will also be used in protecting bioresources in marine conservation areas in support of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009.
Business
The activity will work with companies developing and implementing the technologies at the European Marine Energy Centre WaveHub.
PROGRAMME FACTS AND FIGURES
Start and end dates: 2010 to 2014
Website: http://www.nerc.ac.uk/research/programmes/mre