Environmental impact assessments for offshore-windfarms
Within the site finding for offshore windfarms it is relevant to consider variuos factors: navigation, fishing, navy, exploration of mineral resources (e.g. mineral oil and natural gas drillings) and last but not least marine environmental protection reserves. Most different environmental points of view have to be taken into account. Aspects of the life, the health and the well-being of man are included, fauna and flora, seabed, watercolumn, air and climate, landscape as a whole as well as the conservation of cultural and other assets.
Although offshore windfarms of comparable dimension are developed also in different other European countries (e.g. Denmark, Great Britain, Sweden, Belgium, France and the Netherlands) only very few plants have been built until now. Not only the technical erection of such a project but also the examination of its environmental effects is an extremely demanding task. Since 1999 the OECOS team has participated intensively in the methodical discussion concerning EIA, especially the adequate description, the assessment of the marine environment and the effect mitigation measures to be expected.