Environmental Monitoring Around Deployed Marine Energy Devices

As marine energy project deployments are increasing around the world, there is a need to monitor for potential effects on the marine environment. Virtually all permitting and licensing agreements require environmental monitoring, but few are explicit about how, when, and where monitoring must take place.

As part of the Ocean Renewable Energy Conference (OREC 2023), OES-Environmental is hosting a workshop on 22 June 2023 that aims to identify the key components of effective and efficient programs for environmental monitoring around tidal, riverine, and wave energy devices, and explore whether there are elements that could be standardized among projects nationwide and worldwide. We will also discuss needed research into techniques and outcomes that can facilitate and often reduce monitoring requirements and de-risk the permitting and licensing process as the industry scales up.

If you have identified a site for tidal, riverine, or wave energy development, are in the midst of permitting discussions, or already have post-permit monitoring or research requirements, this workshop will be of interest. We will collectively try to characterize high level, standard processes for monitoring around marine energy devices, and discuss strategies to address key environmental questions and reduce permitting uncertainty in a coordinated and cost effective manner. 

Anyone registered to OREC is welcome to attend this workshop. Please come prepared to share your monitoring and research plans, your hopes for future monitoring scopes, and to learn how we might reduce environmental permitting barriers for the industry.

Agenda

• Introduction, purpose of the workshop
• Examples of environmental monitoring and mitigation around projects
• Best practices in monitoring
• Role of research in supporting monitoring programs
• Next steps
• Adjoun

Presentation