Main ecology contractor for the Ecowende offshore wind farm

An offshore wind farm designed with ecology as its guiding principle.

Partner
Waardenburg Ecology
Client
Ecowende (Shell and Eneco)
Location
Hollandse Kust West, North Sea
Timeframe
2022 - 2045
King Willem-Alexander working with BESE reef paste during a visit to Ecowende
His Majesty the King tries BESE reef paste during a working visit to Ecowende's new onshore service base.

The challenge

Build the most ecologically advanced offshore wind farm to date.

Ecowende aims to make a positive contribution to biodiversity and, by doing so, help accelerate the large-scale rollout of offshore wind in the Netherlands and beyond.

Ecology is the guiding principle of the project, because renewable energy needs to become more sustainable too.

What was done

The rights to build the Ecowende wind farm went to the developer with the best ecology plan: one designed to boost ecology, mitigate negative impacts and fill knowledge gaps.

Waardenburg Ecology helped the Shell and Eneco consortium write the winning ecology programme. Ecowende then appointed Waardenburg Ecology as its main ecology contractor for 23 years.

  1. 1 Nature-inclusive design of the submarine infrastructure.
  2. 2 Restoration of oyster and Sabellaria reefs.
  3. 3 Underwater noise mitigation with new piling techniques, to limit the impact on marine mammals.
  4. 4 A new wind turbine design and wind farm layout, to limit the impact on birds and bats.
  5. 5 A comprehensive monitoring and evaluation programme, led by Waardenburg Ecology with academic and non-academic institutions.
Illustration of marine life around the Ecowende wind farm
An illustration of the thriving world around a wind farm.

Methods used

Ecology measures from seabed to rotor.

  • Nature-inclusive design
  • Digital aerial surveys
  • Offshore baseline and impact studies
  • Submarine monitoring
  • Seabird monitoring
  • GPS tracking of seabirds
  • Bat studies
  • Radar studies
  • Collision risk modelling

Outcome

One of the world's largest offshore field labs.

  • Birds
  • Bats
  • Marine mammals
  • Reefs
years as main ecology contractor
23

The aim is a thriving ecosystem around Ecowende and future wind farms, with minimal impact on birds, bats and the underwater environment.

That principle guides the design and construction of the wind farm.

Planning an offshore wind farm? Make ecology part of the design.

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