Tidal Power in the UK - Sustainable Development Commission

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from other marine sectors such as offshore wind,and oil and gas. Basic information on the effectsof drilling, piling and cabling in the marineenvironment has some application to early stagesof environmental impact assessment/starting pointfor assessing effects). In addition, data sets onmarine ecosystems in certain areas will be useful inassessing the potential effects of a tidal device onthose ecosystems. A gap analysis on environmentalinformation will need to focus in particular onseabirds, marine mammals, benthic ecology andcumulative impacts.However, much information will be specific: to adevice and to a site. There is an obvious cost attachedto obtaining this information, particularly where fieldwork will be required to obtain data from a location.The marine environment is a particularly difficultand expensive environment to operate in, and itwill not always be possible to predict in advancewhether a site might contain important biodiversity,habitats and species. The best approach to obtainingthis information in the most cost effective way willoften be to ensure that environmental baseline datais obtained wherever possible at the same time asother primary data. For tidal sites, modelling of thetidal currents and energy potential at a particularsite will require such field work.The Government, in supporting innovationof these new devices, will also have a role infilling gaps with strategic and generic research.The adaptive management approach outlinedabove can assist. This research will help informthe planning and consenting framework. It willalso support developers to make sound decisionsand by reducing some of the costs. The ScottishGovernment’s Strategic Environmental Assessmenthad a specific objective of putting availableinformation into a framework that developers canuse. The Welsh Assembly Government is consideringa Marine Renewable Energy Strategic Framework.Information gaps cannot be addressed onlyby Government. Developers will need to addressenvironmental considerations upfront. Taking along term view of the potential of a technologyunder development, its environmental impactsand compatibility with other marine activities willinfluence its success, if only by making consentingfor large scale deployment more straightforward.A key issue is developing priorities for research.One example is the COWRIE research programmefor offshore wind, which is starting to considerother marine renewables. Baseline ecological dataon marine sites is also needed and may comefrom different academic and government researchsources, not necessarily related to marine energy.A SEA would be a critical opportunity to draw thisinformation together. Similarly, any competitivetender round for seabed leases from the CrownEstate could consider how data can be centrally heldand made available in recognition that, whetherfor practical or commercial reasons, datasets maybe difficult to access, and there are considerablebenefits to be gained from good coordination andinformation-sharing.The SDC believes that Government and the CrownEstate should ensure that marine energy researchneeds are dealt with through COWRIE, as this is awell-developed structure for shared learning.2.4.5 Utilising the EMEC resourceThe decision to set up EMEC, at a cost of £15m,is a good example of public funding being usedto stimulate private sector investment in aneconomically and environmentally efficient way.The provision of a single site for testing significantlyreduces the need for each developer to find andconstruct their own testing site, and allows for theminimisation of environmental impacts and for theimpact of different devices to be compared in similarconditions. Furthermore, Orkney is an excellentsite at which to test tidal devices, as it has a goodresource without the harsher conditions found inthe Pentland Firth.But there is a risk that the full potential of EMECwill not be realised. The centre has a very smallstaff, and is therefore not able to offer the rangeof support services that might be more efficientlydelivered from a central resource. If the UK is tomaintain a strong lead in the development of tidalenergy, then the position of EMEC needs to bestrengthened.For example, there is minimal budget availablefor environmental baseline studies to assess theimpact of devices on the environment, and thecentre does not offer a certification scheme toenable devices to have their results independentlymonitored and recorded. EMEC has already producedthe first Assessment Standard for Wave EnergyConvertors, 42 a standard that aims to set out auniform methodology that will ensure consistencyand accuracy in the measurement and analysis ofpower performance of wave energy devices. There54 Tidal Power in the UK Sustainable Development Commission
is a need to look at the development of standardsfor tidal energy devices, as well as other aspects ofsite installation and management. Providing EMECwith sufficient funding to support work on standardsand certification would strengthen its internationalstanding as a test facility whilst also providingthe industry with valid, impartial information thatwill be vital in building investor confidence in thetechnologies.There is also a strong case for funding coreresearch and academic staff at the centre, usingexisting ties with Heriot Watt University, the UHIMillennium Institute as well as other UK highereducation bodies.2.4.6 Creating a development pathDespite the significant interest from communitiesaround the coastline of the UK in tidal streamdevelopment, initial demonstration projects arelikely to cluster around key locations becausedevices are some way from commercial deployment.In Northern Ireland, test developments are likely tocluster around Strangford Lough and the northerncoastline. In Scotland, developments are likely togrow out of an initial cluster now developing fromEMEC.While our study has identified the excellentresources in the Pentland Firth for tidal streamdevelopments, first and second generationdevices are unlikely to be located here due to thechallenging conditions. Therefore, support will beneeded for development of devices in lower energyareas that provide better testing and developmentconditions, before the industry is ready for largerscaledeployment in the most energy intensive sites.Around the Highlands and Islands, but in particularin Orkney and parts of the Caithness & Sutherlandcoastline away from the Pentland Firth, suitable sitesdo exist. It therefore seems sensible for the UK andScottish Governments to support the developmentof a regional tidal energy cluster, or ‘hub’, betweenCaithness & Sutherland and the Orkneys for initialtidal development.EMEC would be in a natural position to offersupport and research services, and the ScottishGovernment has already used its Wave and TidalEnergy Support Scheme to good effect to allowschemes to develop out of initial testing at the EMECsite. This approach could be extended, if additionalgrid capacity is provided. Alongside EMEC, the NuclearDecommissioning Authority (NDA) has identifiedthe economic potential of tidal to the Caithness &Sutherland area, and Highlands & Islands Enterprise(HIE) is a long-time supporter of tidal energy.Within the Orkneys there is only limited capacityfor further deployment. However, there is availablecapacity in Caithness & Sutherland currently beingutilised by Dounreay nuclear facility and the capacityof the existing transmission line from Dounreay toBeauly could be increased by adding an additionalstring of wires to the existing pylon line. By adoptingthe SDC’s recommendations on the way that NGCmanages the transmission network, new tidalcapacity could be accommodated.There is a strong case for the Scottish Governmentto coordinate the work of EMEC, the NDA and HIE todevelop a strong regional tidal energy hub, and forone of these bodies to lead on the developmentof additional transmission capacity, including astrengthened link to the Orkneys. However, dueto the Orkneys’ status as a Registered Power Zone(which has allowed for additional expenditure bythe Distribution Network Operator on networkmanagement), connection of the first 15MW ofcapacity would be possible without any constraints.The SDC’s recommendations focus on tidalstream, and care would need to be taken inmanaging any synergies or conflicts towards wavepower or other marine renewables. In the longerterm, it may be more helpful to consider thesetechnologies separately (rather than as ‘marinerenewables’), as they are likely to have differentneeds that Government policy will need to respondto. Government should seek to minimise anypotential overlap between competing facilities (forexample, between EMEC and the proposed ‘WaveHub’ 43 in Cornwall) to ensure that public money isspent in the most efficient way.Sustainable Development Commission Tidal Power in the UK 55
Page 3 and 4:
Turning the TideTidal Power in the
Page 13 and 14: Compliance with environmental legis
Page 15 and 16: e publicly-led as a project and pub
Page 17 and 18: Introduction1
Page 19 and 20: 1.2 Our approachThe SDC announced t
Page 21 and 22: 1.3 UK tidal resourceA detailed des
Page 23 and 24: Figure 3UK tidal range resourceHigh
Page 25 and 26: Box 3Quantifying the renewable ener
Page 27 and 28: Tidal rangeThe timing of the tidal
Page 29 and 30: The majority of generation plants i
Page 31 and 32: last few years. However, we remain
Page 33 and 34: comparatively short lifetime of the
Page 35 and 36: are covered in Chapter 4 in relatio
Page 37 and 38: Tidal Stream2
Page 39 and 40: Figure 9Rotor configuration options
Page 41 and 42: Box 4Case study - European Marine E
Page 43 and 44: 2.2.5 Role of nature conservation a
Page 45 and 46: This is also a risk issue. At prese
Page 47 and 48: 2.3.3 Summary of environmental impa
Page 49 and 50: communities at a local and regional
Page 51 and 52: Figure 10 Publicly-funded energy R&
Page 53 and 54: generation a new sub-sea cable to t
Page 55: wave and tidal devices. The results
Page 59 and 60: Tidal Range3
Page 61 and 62: costs. This factor, along with the
Page 63 and 64: Figure 13 Proposed position of the
Page 65 and 66: Figure 14 Artist’s impression of
Page 67 and 68: minutes, resulting in cost increase
Page 69 and 70: isk management plan for the estuary
Page 71 and 72: 4A Severn Barrage
Page 73 and 74: 4.2.1 The Severn EstuaryThe Severn
Page 75 and 76: have a major effect on the surround
Page 77 and 78: Tidal barragesCompatibility between
Page 79 and 80: there will always be some down-time
Page 81 and 82: Figure 19bNeap tide power generatio
Page 83 and 84: Implications for system balancingFr
Page 85 and 86: 4.4 Carbon emissionsThis section as
Page 87 and 88: and processes of the estuary would
Page 89 and 90: Figure 23 Elevation in and around t
Page 91 and 92: 4.6 Environmental impactsBased on t
Page 93 and 94: places the aim of maintaining biodi
Page 95 and 96: Figure 26 Map showing national desi
Page 97 and 98: Table 7Predicted change in extent o
Page 99 and 100: Transitional habitatsTransitional h
Page 101 and 102: year mean peak average (to avoid ex
Page 103 and 104: well as delays to migration and the
Page 105 and 106: Table 9Severn Estuary habitat chang
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Directive must be applied. 85 In ef
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Implications and mitigation measure
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4.7.3 Coastal defence and flood pro
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ise with the expectation that as se
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4.7.4 EmploymentA Severn barrage wo
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The potential for wider environment
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have negative economic effects both
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Figure 33 Comparing 25 the cost of
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to find alternative sources of inco
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technologies by deflating the price
Page 127 and 128:
emaining finance raised from the sa
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When given information specifically
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for sustainable development (see Se
Page 133 and 134:
a Severn barrage that lie outside t
Page 135 and 136:
The conservation agencies share thi
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5Conclusions andRecommendations
Page 139 and 140:
for bringing prototype technologies
Page 141 and 142:
use of innovative materials or impr
Page 143 and 144:
upholding the long-term public inte
Page 145 and 146:
estuary, but there is no evidence t
Page 147 and 148:
The Government would need to ensure
Page 149 and 150:
Commission) on whether this could b
Page 151 and 152:
6 References1 The term ‘Governmen
Page 153 and 154:
64 For a discussion of ecosystem se
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Glossary of termsBERR Department fo
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