Workshop: How to plan and deploy nature friendly offshore wind

The European Maritime Day (EMD 2023) is an annual two-day event organised by the European Commission which brings together stakeholders from Europe’s maritime community. From 24-25 May in Brest, France, more than 1000 participants representing public authorities, European and international organisations, NGOs, and academia came together to discuss the marine environment and a sustainable blue economy.

From 24-25 May in Brest, France, more than 1000 participants representing public authorities, European and international organisations, NGOs, and academia came together to discuss the marine environment and a sustainable blue economy.

RGI and Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux (LPO/BirdLife International France) co-hosted a workshop at the European Maritime Day on 25 May. Through a multi-stakeholder discussion, we addressed how offshore wind can be sited and deployed in a nature-friendly way, from the implementation of ecosystem-based Maritime Spatial Plans to the application of sensitivity maps and the design of wind infrastructure.

Furthermore, the workshop addressed the need for transboundary and sea basin cooperation, alongside the assessment and mitigation of cumulative impacts, to simultaneously achieve offshore wind energy and nature protection and restoration targets.