An Taisce is very supportive of offshore wind development that is done sustainably; that is fully compliant with our national, European and international legal obligations; and that recognises the intertwined nature of the climate and biodiversity crises by avoiding particularly ecologically sensitive areas and fully assessing and mitigating potential ecological impacts.

You can read the full policy position document via this link.

Or by clicking the image below:

The urgent need for developing renewable energy while protecting biodiversity

The urgency of the climate emergency is undeniable, and the need for action is clear. Yet climate change and biodiversity are inextricably linked. Terrestrial and marine ecosystems currently absorb roughly half of man-made carbon emissions. Biodiversity and healthy ecosystems are essential to mitigate against climate change, yet climate change is irrevocably damaging those same systems and species.

The protection of our biodiversity is a cost effective and logical way to mitigate against the impacts of climate change. Failure to protect our biodiversity and the further descent into the sixth mass extinction¹ will inevitably lead to an ecological tipping point, whereby our natural systems will no longer function as a mitigant for climate change, and we will have lost a primary means of combating our rising carbon levels.

In our drive to decarbonise our society at the speed and scale necessary, it is essential to balance the urgent decarbonisation requirements of society with the needs of biodiversity. Shipping, overfishing, fossil fuel exploration, pollution and climate change have already caused degradation of the marine ecosystem. It is critical that offshore wind not be developed in such a way that it acts as another major pressure. This can be achieved with the right marine spatial protection and planning regime, rigorous and extensive data collection and robust environmental impact assessments. In this way, the three pillars of sustainability can be secured (society, environment, economy). In particular, proper marine spatial planning is an essential tool for ecosystem-based approaches to offshore wind development and is vital for equitably allocating space in the marine area for different uses while ensuring the protection and enhancement of marine biodiversity.

The worsening climate crisis requires great urgency in the rapid rollout of renewables, as required by the EU target of 42.5% renewable-generated energy, and the national target of 80% renewable energy generation by 2030.

The rapid rollout of renewables is also a key part of ensuring compliance with our legally binding carbon budgets. It is our position that careful spatial planning is critical to balance renewables rollout with marine biodiversity preservation and enhancement.

The ecosystem services offered by the marine environment, particularly carbon sequestration, as well as rich cultural and provisioning services need to be secured and enhanced to tackle the dual crises of climate and biodiversity breakdown.

We must ensure that by developing offshore wind in the interest of emissions mitigation that we do not also worsen the climate crisis by damaging crucial marine ecosystems. With proper ecosystem-led spatial planning, we would be able to designate the space required in the marine area to facilitate both offshore wind development and ecosystem enhancement and restoration.

Please read the full policy position by clicking on this link.