As ocean energy is an emerging sector, regulators naturally have questions about the impact that deployments could have on marine environment. But information on those impacts is scarce due to the relatively small number of deployments. Different stakeholder groups also face different challenges: authorities lack infallible information, researchers try to model potential impacts to fill that gap, and developers struggle to meet all the monitoring requirements.
To turn that vicious cycle into a virtuous one, more devices should be deployed to produce more data that would then inform the consenting and facilitate further deployments.
This ETIP Ocean workshop brought together ocean energy researchers, developers and consenting authorities to identify solutions to facilitate consenting processes. During the workshop, participants were able to discuss how the existing systems could be improved and what the priorities are for each stakeholder. Discussions in breakout sessions allowed knowledge sharing among colleagues across Europe but also between stakeholder groups.
