Commercial marine renewable energy (MRE) developments can take extended periods of time to progress, in part due to complicated permitting processes that require expensive data collection and data review. Much of this delay is associated... more
Commercial marine renewable energy (MRE) developments can take extended periods of time to progress, in part due to complicated permitting processes that require expensive data collection and data review. Much of this delay is associated with uncertainty around potential effects of MRE on marine animals and habitats, leading regulators and stakeholders to believe that significant risks may exist. This paper acknowledges the state of scientific knowledge around MRE environmental effects and puts forward a process for risk retirement associated with early MRE developments, with a focus on the potential effects from underwater noise from wave and tidal devices, as well as potential effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF) from export power cables on marine animals and habitats. This process was developed as part of the Ocean Energy Systems (OES) OES-Environmental task.
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Abstract Many fish species are threatened worldwide by overfishing, contamination, coastal development, climate change, and other anthropogenic activities. Marine renewable energy (MRE) is under development as a sustainable alternative to... more
Abstract Many fish species are threatened worldwide by overfishing, contamination, coastal development, climate change, and other anthropogenic activities. Marine renewable energy (MRE) is under development as a sustainable alternative to carbon-based energy sources. Regulators and stakeholders worry that MRE devices will add another threat to fish populations already under pressure. This paper reviews the current knowledge of potential effects of MRE development on fish. These may include collision with devices that may lead to injury or death; underwater noise generated by MRE devices that may affect fish behavior and health; electromagnetic fields from power cables and other electrical infrastructure that may lead sensitive fish species to approach or avoid them; changes in critical fish habitat, including nursery, feeding, and spawning grounds; shoaling of fish around MRE devices; and displacement of fish populations or communities around arrays of multiple MRE devices. Field- and laboratory-based studies that have examined fish presence, avoidance, and evasion around MRE devices suggest that collisions are rare. Progress is being made on data collection and modeling tools to estimate fish encounter rates with MRE devices, the consequences of collisions, and population-level ecological risks. Similarly, studies exposing fish to turbine-generated noise and electromagnetic fields demonstrate little effect on fish behavior; in fact, MRE device noise falls below reported hearing thresholds. Inquiries into the effects of MRE devices on fish are ongoing, and research is needed to ensure the health of fish populations while facilitating the sustainable development of renewable energy sources.
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Marine renewable energy (MRE) encompasses the harvest of energy from the movement of ocean waters in the form of either currents or waves, as well as temperature and salinity differentials. To date, most MRE development has focused on... more
Marine renewable energy (MRE) encompasses the harvest of energy from the movement of ocean waters in the form of either currents or waves, as well as temperature and salinity differentials. To date, most MRE development has focused on utility-scale electrical grid generation, but a growing body of work focuses on non-grid applications in the blue economy where MRE could provide power on-site and at the scale needed for specific maritime sectors. One of the blue economy sectors with promising applications for MRE is ocean observations using both mobile and stationary platforms. This paper documents the steps and results of engaging with experts across the myriad ocean observation platforms and capabilities to inform five use cases. These use cases include descriptions of specific ocean observation applications performing measurements of high societal value (e.g., data for weather forecasting and tsunami detection) that closely resemble specific sensing systems and, in most cases, are placed in a particular area of the ocean. Rapid resource assessments (i.e., first-order estimates) were performed at these locations to determine the suitability of marine and other renewable energy sources. From the information gathered so far, MRE has significant potential to enable improved ocean observation missions, expand ocean observing capacity, and develop as an industry in parallel with the needs of our changing oceans.
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Marine renewable energy (MRE) can benefit from broad outreach and engagement with a wide variety of audiences to raise awareness, address concerns about potential environmental impacts, generate public support, build a future workforce,... more
Marine renewable energy (MRE) can benefit from broad outreach and engagement with a wide variety of audiences to raise awareness, address concerns about potential environmental impacts, generate public support, build a future workforce, share progress on research and development, and succeed within the larger blue economy. OES-Environmental is an international initiative of 16 countries that brings together the MRE community to increase understanding of environmental effects of MRE. OES-Environmental has focused on sharing research outcomes and knowledge to broad audiences that are best addressed with a variety of learning formats. Throughout these diverse outreach efforts, several important lessons have been learned. These include the importance of clarifying the main message for each audience and for each resource created; finding the best venue to deliver materials to different audiences; using language, complexity, and context that suits audience requirements and is age-appropri...
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Marine renewable energy (MRE) harnesses energy from the ocean and provides a low-carbon sustainable energy source for national grids and remote uses. The international MRE industry is in the early stages of development, focused largely on... more
Marine renewable energy (MRE) harnesses energy from the ocean and provides a low-carbon sustainable energy source for national grids and remote uses. The international MRE industry is in the early stages of development, focused largely on tidal and riverine turbines, and wave energy converters (WECs), to harness energy from tides, rivers, and waves, respectively. Although MRE supports climate change mitigation, there are concerns that MRE devices and systems could affect portions of the marine and river environments. The greatest concern for tidal and river turbines is the potential for animals to be injured or killed by collision with rotating blades. Other risks associated with MRE device operation include the potential for turbines and WECs to cause disruption from underwater noise emissions, generation of electromagnetic fields, changes in benthic and pelagic habitats, changes in oceanographic processes, and entanglement of large marine animals. The accumulated knowledge of inte...
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Following numerous global scientific studies and major international agreements, the decarbonization of energy systems is an apparent and pressing concern. The consequence of continued emission growth tied to rising global average... more
Following numerous global scientific studies and major international agreements, the decarbonization of energy systems is an apparent and pressing concern. The consequence of continued emission growth tied to rising global average temperatures is difficult to predict, but against a background of other natural and human-induced disasters, may create a situation, from a positive perspective, where each disaster event triggers “build back better” responses designed to speed the transition toward low carbon, resilience-oriented energy systems. This article examines the potential for disaster-triggered responses in communities, at various local and regional levels, in four industrial economies in the Asia Pacific region: Japan, China, Australia, and the USA. Seven case studies were evaluated against a set of criteria that exemplify the key aspects of resilient energy systems. The research results suggest that a new space of innovation does emerge in post-disaster situations at a range of...
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Research Interests: Engineering, Wind Energy, Risk assessment, Risk Analysis, Environmental Risk, and 12 moreConceptual Design, Conceptual Model, Environmental Effect, Decision support tool, Risk Assessment, Risk Evaluation, Offshore Wind Power, Data Type, Submarine Pipeline, Decision Process, Evaluation function, and High risk
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Power extracted from fast-moving tidal currents has been identified as a potential commercial-scale source of renewable energy. Marine and hydrokinetic (MHK) device developers and utilities are pursuing deployment of prototype tidal... more
Power extracted from fast-moving tidal currents has been identified as a potential commercial-scale source of renewable energy. Marine and hydrokinetic (MHK) device developers and utilities are pursuing deployment of prototype tidal turbines to assess technology viability, site feasibility, and environmental interactions. Deployment of prototype turbines requires environmental review and permits from a range of regulatory authorities. Ensuring the safety of marine animals, particularly those under protection of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, has emerged as a key regulatory challenge for initial MHK deployments. The greatest perceived risk to marine animals is from strike by the rotating blades of tidal turbines. Development of the marine animal alert system (MAAS) was undertaken to support monitoring and mitigation requirements for tidal turbine deployments. The prototype system development focused on the Southern Resident killer wha...
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Local government water resource managers are faced with the twin challenges of climate change and increasing development in coastal watersheds, and are driven by the necessity to provide critical habitat for endangered fish in the estuary... more
Local government water resource managers are faced with the twin challenges of climate change and increasing development in coastal watersheds, and are driven by the necessity to provide critical habitat for endangered fish in the estuary and watershed, and the requirement to protect human infrastructure from flooding. Numerical models of waters resources have been developed for the Snohomish Basin in north central Puget Sound, linking the flow of freshwater from the upper watershed (Snow Caps) through the floodplain, into the marine waters of the Snohomish River estuary and into Puget Sound (White Caps). The linked models were used to generate scenarios of fresh and marine water flow and interaction, run under conditions of future climate change, and changes in land use/land cover (to simulate development in the watershed). Scenarios were informed by the model output in order to understand effects of climate change and development on seasonal flooding, transport of contaminants from land into the estuary, changes in salt wedge intrusion into salmon habitat, and changes in the exposure of mud flats in the estuary. The scenarios are based on specific questions posed by local government staff; scenario storyboards have been shared with local and state water managers through interactive workshops and online tools. Feedback from the participants helped guide the outcome of the scenarios. The effectiveness of providing model-driven simulations and forecasts to local water managers is assessed and best practices for developing communication vehicles and disseminating the results are analyzed
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ABSTRACT The pressure to develop new and renewable forms of energy to combat climate change, ocean acidification, and energy security has encouraged exploration of sources of power generation from the ocean. One of the major challenges to... more
ABSTRACT The pressure to develop new and renewable forms of energy to combat climate change, ocean acidification, and energy security has encouraged exploration of sources of power generation from the ocean. One of the major challenges to deploying these devices is discerning the likely effects those devices and associated systems will have on the marine environment. Determining the effects each device design and deployment system may have on specific marine animals and habitats, estimating the extent of those effects upon the resiliency of the ecosystem, and designing appropriate mitigation measures to protect against degradation all pose substantial challenges. With little direct observational or experimental data available on the effects of wave, tidal, and offshore wind devices on marine animals, habitats, and ecosystem processes, researchers have developed the Environmental Risk Evaluation System (ERES) to provide preliminary assessments of these risks and to act as a framework for integrating future data on direct interactions of ocean energy devices with the environment. Using biophysical risk factors, interactions of marine animals and seabirds, with ocean energy devices and systems, are examined; potential effects on habitats, and changes in processes such as sedimentation patterns and water quality, are also considered. The risks associated with specific interactions for which data are more readily available are explored including interactions between ocean energy devices and surface vessels, toxicity of anti-biofouling paints, and potential for harm to animals from turbine blade strike. ERES also examines the effect that environmental regulations have on the deployment and operation of ocean energy devices.
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The U.S. Department of Energy (US DOE) has mobilized its National Laboratories to address the broad range of environmental effects of ocean and river energy development. The National Laboratories are using a risk-based approach to set... more
The U.S. Department of Energy (US DOE) has mobilized its National Laboratories to address the broad range of environmental effects of ocean and river energy development. The National Laboratories are using a risk-based approach to set priorities among environmental effects, and to direct research activities. Case studies will be constructed to determine the most significant environmental effects of ocean energy harvest for tidal systems in temperate estuaries, for wave energy installations in temperate coastal areas, wave installations in sub-tropical waters, and riverine energy installations in large rivers. In addition, the National Laboratories are investigating the effects of energy removal from waves, tides and river currents using numerical modeling studies. Laboratory and field research is also underway to understand the effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF), acoustic noise, toxicity from anti-biofouling coatings, effects on benthic habitats, and physical interactions with ...
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Adaptive management (AM) is a systematic process intended to improve policies and practices and reduce scientific uncertainty by learning from the outcome of management decisions. Although many nations are considering the use of AM for... more
Adaptive management (AM) is a systematic process intended to improve policies and practices and reduce scientific uncertainty by learning from the outcome of management decisions. Although many nations are considering the use of AM for wind energy, its application in practice and in policy has been limited. Recent applications of AM have revealed fundamental differences in the definition of AM, its applications, and the projects or planning processes to which it might be applied. This chapter suggests the need for a common understanding and definition of and framework for AM and its application to wind energy. We discuss a definition of AM and technical guidance created by the United States (US) Department of the Interior’s (DOI’s) Adaptive Management Working Group. The chapter also examines how AM has been applied to wind energy development in several European nations and in the USA. The challenges and opportunities associated with implementation of AM for wind development are addr...
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The deployment of tidal turbines in coastal waters raises questions about the potential risk to marine animals from strike by rotating blades. Of particular concern are marine mammals that are already facing threats from other human... more
The deployment of tidal turbines in coastal waters raises questions about the potential risk to marine animals from strike by rotating blades. Of particular concern are marine mammals that are already facing threats from other human activities as well as climate change. Regulators in the US who are charged with permitting the installation of tidal turbines have sought additional information to guide biological assessments of blade strike to marine mammals. This study determined a “worst case” scenario for interaction between a marine mammal and a tidal turbine, focusing on the highly endangered Southern Resident Killer Whale in the U.S. and an open-centred tidal turbine (OpenHydro) proposed for deployment. The analysis combined a finite element modelling of the forces from the turbine blade with information on the biomechanical analysis of the marine mammal tissues, in order to estimate the potential results of a blade strike. Supported by ancillary data, this analysis is being used...
The rapid growth of renewable energy from offshore sources has raised concerns that underwater noise from construction and operation of offshore devices may interfere with communication of marine animals. An underwater sound model was... more
The rapid growth of renewable energy from offshore sources has raised concerns that underwater noise from construction and operation of offshore devices may interfere with communication of marine animals. An underwater sound model was developed to simulate sound propagation from marine-hydrokinetic energy (MHK) devices or offshore wind (OSW) energy platforms. Finite volume and finite difference methods were developed to solve the 3D Helmholtz equation of sound propagation in the coastal environment. For the finite volume method, the grid system consists of triangular grids in the horizontal plane and sigma-layers in the vertical dimension. A 3D sparse matrix solver with complex coefficients was formed for solving the resulting acoustic pressure field. The Complex Shifted Laplacian Preconditioner (CSLP) method was applied to solve the matrix system iteratively with MPI parallelization using a high performance cluster. The sound model was then coupled with the Finite Volume Community ...
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Marine renewable energy (i.e., wave, tidal or ocean current, thermal gradient, and salinity gradient) or MRE can revolutionize ocean observing capabilities. Five use cases representing a range of ocean observing platforms were developed... more
Marine renewable energy (i.e., wave, tidal or ocean current, thermal gradient, and salinity gradient) or MRE can revolutionize ocean observing capabilities. Five use cases representing a range of ocean observing platforms were developed based on end-user feedback. Drawing from these use cases, common needs or functional requirements were developed to help guide the integration of MRE power delivery for ocean observation structures and functions. The functional requirements were determined from descriptions of the use cases, specifications of hardware that are used or closely associated with existing ocean observation platforms, and direct feedback from ocean observation sensor/platform developers and users. Twenty types of functional requirements were identified, including those associated with power and energy use; physical system requirements; temperature and depth; electrical, acoustic, and motion interference; and reliability. Each set of functional requirements is illustrated as features of the use cases. By defining functional requirements for MRE technology integration in ocean observing platforms, and focusing on end-user requirements, barriers to developing MRE-driven ocean observation missions can be reduced.