Assessment of environmental impacts of proposed floating offshore wind design envelope.
Abstract
This project was established to produce a comprehensive report that would provide Natural England with an evidence-based assessment of the environmental impacts of the proposed Floating Offshore Wind (FLOW) design envelope. The design envelope is defined by the Crown Estate to provide maximum and minimum values for technical elements of FLOW turbines i.e., hub height, rotor radius, foundation type etc. The design envelope allows developers to begin the consenting process where final details of the project may be unknown. The first phase of this project delivered a technical review of the available FLOW technologies that exist in the market currently. The second phase of the project was to identify the environmental receptors that may be sensitive to impacts from FLOW developments. The third phase of the project was to assess the potential environmental impacts and pressure pathways from FLOW.