Abstract
After nearly two decades of development and over 20,000 hours of real-sea 1:4.5 scale testing, Wave Dragon have encountered and solved a considerable number of issues and learned to optimise the control of our device in a vast range of situations and conditions.
The next stage of realisation is to deploy a full scale (7MW) unit in UK Waters; the application for formal consents were made on the 27th of April 2007. A full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has been conducted assessing all the information on biological, physical and human factors that the consenting authorities may consider pertinent. An EIA must also consider how these factors interrelate with each other and with other issues such as public perception, socio-economic factors, risk assessment and safety.
The EIA and Consents processes are often where technology meets policy, practice and the public for the first time; and the process itself can be complex. This Paper will present Wave Dragons actual experiences of the EIA and Consent application process in the UK from Initial Consultations, EIA process, through to consent submission to responsible authorities.
This Paper details the initial discussions with Consenting bodies and the initial geophysical / navigational work. The Paper will then present how this information was taken, assessed and, in conjunction with Consenting bodies, how it was used to formulate a full survey assessment of the deployment site and land fall areas. The Paper will also present the findings of these surveys and how this information was utilised in the Environmental Statement and Consents.