2.3.4 Results of Stakeholder Involvement
The MERMAID project focused on four case study sites representative for European
waters, each with local challenges. The case studies differed not only with respect to
physical aspects but also with respect to marine spatial planning, current planning of
offshore wind development, aquaculture activities and governance. The involvement
of stakeholders also differs at some sites several stakeholders were part of the
MERMAID project (e.g. the Baltic site), whereas in other cases, there were no
local projects partners that also were stakeholders (e.g. the Mediterranean site).
The involvement of the stakeholders resulted in four different designs for multiuse platforms at sea. The outcome of the design process, which stakeholders were
present and how the participating stakeholders’ concerns were taken into account, is
described in greater detail in Rasenberg et al. (2013, 2014) and Röckmann
et al. (2015).
The results of the North Sea showed that stakeholders who had a relation with this
area – for current and potential future uses – were identified, and the following
stakeholders participated: offshore wind farm developers, seaweed and shellfish
aquaculture fisheries, regulators and policymakers, offshore construction companies,
companies interested in the end product of the design and NGOs. In collaboration
with the stakeholders, offshore wind parks combined with seaweed and mussel
aquaculture were identified as the most promising conceptual multi-use design.
The final design did not fully integrate the aquaculture structures inside the wind
farm, but instead in the areas just outside of and in between the wind farms.
Many of the participating stakeholders could see benefits in participating in a
multi-use platform, e.g. with regard to more efficient use of space and functional
synergies. The idea was not new to stakeholders, and their discussion focused on
optimisation with regard to sharing infrastructures to reduce O&M costs and create
win-win solutions. To increase employment and support the fisheries sector, their
vessels, possibly redesigned as part of an infrastructure, was seen as an important
aspect to consider. The biggest challenge for the North Sea site was to find solutions
that could be profitable for all stakeholders, including risks and extra insurance costs.
The wind energy developers were very clear regarding the conditions for design:
multi-use should not cause any hindrances for wind turbines or obstacles for
operation and maintenance activities. Furthermore, it was stated that in order to
find investors, the license procedures need to be aligned for multi-use, i.e. faster than
today, and uncertainties need to be minimised (van den Burg et al. 2016).
The results of the Mediterranean showed that stakeholders included the energy
sector, aquaculture, policymakers and environmental authorities. The final design for
the Mediterranean site included grid-connected wind turbines combined with fish
farming. In the layout, the fish farm is placed in the space among the wind turbines,
leading to a total occupied space of 0.64 km
2 (Röckmann et al. 2015).
A number of stakeholders initially opposed to the idea of including aquaculture
farms in the multi-use platforms, because they were afraid of competition with the
already existing coastal aquaculture. Despite this fear of competition, the design
32
M. Stuiver et al.
The MERMAID project focused on four case study sites representative for European
waters, each with local challenges. The case studies differed not only with respect to
physical aspects but also with respect to marine spatial planning, current planning of
offshore wind development, aquaculture activities and governance. The involvement
of stakeholders also differs at some sites several stakeholders were part of the
MERMAID project (e.g. the Baltic site), whereas in other cases, there were no
local projects partners that also were stakeholders (e.g. the Mediterranean site).
The involvement of the stakeholders resulted in four different designs for multiuse platforms at sea. The outcome of the design process, which stakeholders were
present and how the participating stakeholders’ concerns were taken into account, is
described in greater detail in Rasenberg et al. (2013, 2014) and Röckmann
et al. (2015).
The results of the North Sea showed that stakeholders who had a relation with this
area – for current and potential future uses – were identified, and the following
stakeholders participated: offshore wind farm developers, seaweed and shellfish
aquaculture fisheries, regulators and policymakers, offshore construction companies,
companies interested in the end product of the design and NGOs. In collaboration
with the stakeholders, offshore wind parks combined with seaweed and mussel
aquaculture were identified as the most promising conceptual multi-use design.
The final design did not fully integrate the aquaculture structures inside the wind
farm, but instead in the areas just outside of and in between the wind farms.
Many of the participating stakeholders could see benefits in participating in a
multi-use platform, e.g. with regard to more efficient use of space and functional
synergies. The idea was not new to stakeholders, and their discussion focused on
optimisation with regard to sharing infrastructures to reduce O&M costs and create
win-win solutions. To increase employment and support the fisheries sector, their
vessels, possibly redesigned as part of an infrastructure, was seen as an important
aspect to consider. The biggest challenge for the North Sea site was to find solutions
that could be profitable for all stakeholders, including risks and extra insurance costs.
The wind energy developers were very clear regarding the conditions for design:
multi-use should not cause any hindrances for wind turbines or obstacles for
operation and maintenance activities. Furthermore, it was stated that in order to
find investors, the license procedures need to be aligned for multi-use, i.e. faster than
today, and uncertainties need to be minimised (van den Burg et al. 2016).
The results of the Mediterranean showed that stakeholders included the energy
sector, aquaculture, policymakers and environmental authorities. The final design for
the Mediterranean site included grid-connected wind turbines combined with fish
farming. In the layout, the fish farm is placed in the space among the wind turbines,
leading to a total occupied space of 0.64 km
2 (Röckmann et al. 2015).
A number of stakeholders initially opposed to the idea of including aquaculture
farms in the multi-use platforms, because they were afraid of competition with the
already existing coastal aquaculture. Despite this fear of competition, the design
32
M. Stuiver et al.