Context

In 2016, the energy ministers of the North Sea countries signed a political declaration to cooperate in this sector. One of the areas requiring collaboration is maritime spatial planning. To assist in the development of objectives in this area, an environmental working group has been mandated to develop a Common Environmental Assessment Framework (CEAF). Since 2017, a network of stakeholders from 7 countries (Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, United Kingdom and France) has been working on the marine environment and wind energy in the Channel and North Sea.

Objective

To provide recommendations on the establishment of a common environmental assessment framework for wind energy in the North Sea.

Scientific and technical contents

• Collection of information on the state of the environment and the development of wind farms in the North Sea.
• Development of recommendations for the application of common methods, regulations for impact assessment, consideration of the precautionary principle and the use of differentiated approaches for the determination of thresholds versus impacts.
• Identification of knowledge gaps and prioritisation of R&D needs.
• Estimation of the effects of wind farms on individuals and populations (mortality, displacement of preferential habitats, etc.).

CEAF Brochure (PDF)

Organisation

This project is being carried out by the following government organisations: the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management (Rijkswaterstaat), the German Federal Agency for Maritime Navigation and Hydrography (Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrography), the French Ministry of the Environment (Ministère de la transition Ecologique et Solidaire), the Danish Ministry of Energy, Climate and Infrastructure (Klima-, Energi og Forsyningsministeriet), and the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. France Energies Marines joined the CEAF in 2019 as France’s representative in the ECUME working group.

Photo credit : Vait McRight / Pixabay