Britain: Offshore wind offers tentative welcome to Marine Management Organisation - by Tom Young
The wind energy industry offered a cautious welcome to the Marine and Coastal Access Bill outlined in the Queen's Speech today, claiming the legislation should help simplify the complex planning rules governing the development of offshore wind farms. Maria McCaffery MBE, chief executive of the British Wind Energy Association, said that she hoped the creation of a new single body tasked with managing the marine environment would help ensure that conservation and renewable energy interests are balanced. "The Marine and Coastal Access Bill is a pioneering piece of legislation, but we must ensure that it allows for the expansion of marine renewable energy, including offshore wind, wave and tidal," she said. "It would be a pyrrhic victory if short-term conservation undermined long-term sustainability and our ability to tackle climate change." The renewable industry remains fearful that a number of high-profile marine energy projects, such as the proposed Severn tidal barrage, could yet be derailed by concerns over coastal conservation.
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