At today’s “Strong Winds, Thriving Seas” conference, participants identified actionable and innovative strategies to help align the EU’s offshore wind targets with crucial biodiversity goals.
Participants highlighted the importance of scaling up examples of sustainable project planning and implementation to speed up wind and grid development. They discussed how offshore wind and grids can be deployed in a timely manner while minimising impacts on nature, restoring biodiversity, and involving coastal communities.
Members of the Offshore Coalition for Environment and Nature (OCEaN) called upon the incoming European Commission and EU Member States to ensure robust maritime spatial planning and make better use of ecological and social non-price criteria in offshore wind auctions. In their joint statement (available here), OCEaN Members further outlined how the EU’s biodiversity protection and restoration targets can go hand in hand with the further expansion of offshore wind and grid infrastructure.