This project aims to improve our understanding of how offshore renewable energy developments and commercial fisheries interact and explores how the two industries can successfully coexist within shared marine environments. The study assessed existing evidence, identified key knowledge gaps, and provides recommendations to support fisheries coexistence with offshore renewable developments.
Overview
With the continued growth of the offshore renewable energy sector in the UK, interactions with established marine activities such as commercial fishing have become increasingly important. The project brought together stakeholders, reviewed existing literature, and applied analytical approaches to help build confidence in decision-making by regulators, developers, and the fishing industry, while identifying areas for future research.
The study was broken down into three work packages:
- WP1 – Stakeholder engagement and literature review: Explored experiences of colocation between offshore renewables and commercial fisheries, assessed impacts on fishing activity and offshore renewables projects as well as highlighting key constraints and factors that affect economic value.
- WP2 – Fishing gear penetration depth review: Collated and analysed data on fishing gear penetration depths across seabed types, identified key evidence gaps, and reviewed potential implications of cable protection measures on commercial fisheries.
- WP3 – Survey and trial evaluation: Evaluated survey, over-trawl and fishing gear trials, and other assessments / cable monitoring methods used in the industry, evaluating their confidence and usefulness for fisheries coexistence. Focus on emerging technologies and future solutions were also discussed.
The project identified both displacement and coexistence between offshore wind developments and commercial fisheries, with outcomes influenced by fisheries engagement, project design, and post-construction management.
Spatial mapping revealed that while current offshore wind developments have a relatively minor impact on the economic value of UK fisheries, if there is a full delivery of planned offshore wind projects, effects could be more pronounced. It was noted that the lack of high-resolution fisheries data across all fleets posed a significant challenge to conducting accurate assessments of fisheries coexistence.
The report outlines the applications of surveys and over-trawl trials, while also examining their limitations. Innovations like fishing gear trials and advanced cable monitoring technologies are seen to offer promising avenues for increasing evidence, although not without restrictions, while future developments in monitoring systems are expected to improve risk management in this sector.
This project forms part of the Offshore Wind Evidence and Change programme, led by The Crown Estate in partnership with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs. The Offshore Wind Evidence and Change programme is an ambitious strategic research and data-led programme. Its aim is to facilitate the sustainable and coordinated expansion of offshore wind to help meet the UK’s commitments to low carbon energy transition whilst supporting clean, healthy, productive and biologically diverse seas.
