August 2010
Scotland’s emerging offshore wind industry must resolve a range of environmental and technical challenges if it is to help meet the nation’s carbon reduction targets and also generate an estimated 20,000 jobs within ten years.
A nationwide team of environmental experts has pinpointed issues and opportunities facing the new industry, which is set to see investment of up to £30billion by 2020.
The international consultancy, Halcrow Group Ltd, examined the potential for wind energy development in the whole of Scottish Territorial Waters. The approach involved detailed mapping analysis and consultation and consideration of potential environmental impacts, including those related to marine mammals, fish breeding and migration, birds, commercial fishing, shipping movements and visual amenity.
The Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), led from Halcrow’s Scottish offices, formed part of the company’s support to the Scottish Government in drafting a Plan for developing offshore wind energy over the next two decades and beyond.
Ten areas with potential for development in the short term were identified, with 25 with potential in the longer term. The SEA was carried out in parallel with the development of the draft Plan to ensure integral consideration of environmental issues.
It identifies potential impacts and recommends typical mitigation and monitoring requirements that could be applied at a project or site-specific level. In addition, the draft plan identifies a number of future national or regional studies to improve understanding of potential impacts and mitigation.
The Draft Plan for Offshore Wind Energy in Scottish Territorial Waters and its SEA is out for public consultation until 16 August and can be found here.
Fiona Henderson, principal consultant at Halcrow in Inverness, said: “It has been a privilege to contribute at a strategic level to assist in the development of offshore wind and to meeting renewable energy targets”.
“With projected investment of up to £30billion and the creation of upwards of 20,000 jobs in the next decade, along with many billions of pounds more in supply chain activity, this represents an opportunity similar to the emergence of Scotland’s oil industry in the 1970s.”
Halcrow
Halcrow is an award-winning consultancy that specialises in the provision of planning, design and management services for infrastructure development worldwide.
As one of the largest multi-disciplinary consultancies, Halcrow combines global thinking with local knowledge across transport, water, maritime, property and power commissions in over 90 countries.
A forward-thinking company, Halcrow injects expertise and innovation into major projects with examples including: London Tideway Tunnels, Qatar Bahrain Causeway, Busan Goje and Crossrail.
Halcrow has won widespread recognition for living its purpose of sustaining and improving the quality of people’s lives and the communities it works in benefit from this focus on good corporate citizenship.
As a people-led company, Halcrow connects the right people – in the right place – no matter what stage of the project cycle. Striving to achieve excellence in all it does, it encourages collaborative working, strong team integration and a commitment to health and safety across all areas of the business.
Halcrow is owned and managed by its employees and staff shareholders, giving them a unique connection with the company and passion for their work. Halcrow’s dedication to its employees was highlighted when it recently gained ‘top 20 employers for working family’s status’.