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Environmental issues faced across the project lifecycle
Sue BarrOpen Hydro
Slide 2 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Environmental issues across project lifecycle
A Tidal Perspective© OpenHydro Group Limited 2009 | Confidential | Sue Barr
Slide 3 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Agenda
1. OpenHydro
2. A Tidal Energy Project
3. Regulation and consenting
4. Understanding the baseline
5. Monitoring
6. Future Needs
Slide 4 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
OpenHydro
Company formed
2004
Open-Centre Turbine
Technology
50+ employees in
Dublin and Greenore
€63m raised to date
Operational in 7
countries
.
OpenHydro
Slide 5 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
OpenHydro
Research Structure
Installed at EMEC during 2006
Continuous testing of 5 OCT-06
tidal turbines
Grid connected May 2008
OpenHydro’s Turbine Research Structure
Slide 6 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
OpenHydro Installer
OpenHydro Installer
Slide 7 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Tidal Energy Project - Subsea Installation
OpenHydro Installer
Slide 8 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Subsea Installation
6m Subsea Base
Commercial design is for turbines mounted directly on the seabed.
During 2008, OpenHydro built and deployed its first seabed mounted turbine at EMEC.
Slide 9 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Subsea Installation
Slide 10 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
10m Open Centre Turbine
Slide 11 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Scotland – Pentland Firth Worlds First commercial scale licensing round
Slide 12 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Commercial Developments
OpenHydro Projects
OpenHydro selected by competitive process
Slide 13 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Tidal Energy Projects
Initiation
Development
Pre-Construction
Construction
Feasibility studiesContracts
Site DevelopmentConsultation
Operate
$
ADCPEIA
Design / FinancialsConsultation
Turbine ManufactureTurbine shipment
Power conversion procurementBase manufacture
Turbine assembly / commissioningSubsea cable installationPost installation survey
Vessel resource deployment
MonitoringMaintenance
Component and replacement
Slide 14 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Regulation and Consenting
What makes a tidal project work
Primary legislation often drafted to
cover more established industries - oil
& gas, fisheries, aggregate extraction.
Needs a flexible and open forum for
knowledge transfer
Projects will not be successful without
co-operation and data sharing.
Policy
Project Success
Slide 15 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Environmental
Key issues for Tidal Development Identification of key receptors - adequacy of baseline data.
Direct effects – collision, presence of devices
Physical effects – sediment regimes, energy extraction
Underwater Noise
Cumulative Effects
Slide 16 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Environmental
Baseline Data Collection / Analysis
Baseline surveys carried out at all locations.
Geophysical, tidal resource, ecological and physical oceanographic data analysed.
Where required, turbine engineered for receiving environment.
Data reviewed against ongoing monitoring results.
Slide 17 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Environmental
Site Assessments
Understanding the receiving environment
Good data collection relevant to project definition
Acceptance of ongoing post-construction monitoring defining effects - some
things we don’t know
Sensitivities found at every location
Slide 18 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
MonitoringResearch Platform
Preliminary underwater noise profiling – towed hydrophone.
Seabed recovery and ROV surveys.
Ongoing ADCP data collection during turbine operation.
Underwater video of turbine and environmental interactions.
Fish Interactions at turbine.
Slide 19 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Monitoring
Research Structure – Fish Interactions
Continuous video recording during operation
Camera mounted on 2m arm
Fish observation indicate feeding behaviour
during periods of low tidal velocity
Arriving downstream of turbine - not upstream
Some reef effects observed- seasonality and
tidal cycle to be established
Slide 20 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Results
Subsea Installation
1 years post construction monitoring
Testing of deployment method and engineering
Seabed recovery, ROV and marine mammal
observations
CFD Analysis and ADCP measurements at >20m
Slide 21 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Monitoring
OpenHydro
Monitoring ongoing at both deployment locations;
a) Regular ROV surveys
b) Continuous video
c) Noise
d) Marine Mammal interactions
No negative environmental impacts observed.
Fish interaction – ongoing monitoring and assessing data.
No recorded marine mammal interactions.
Slide 22 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Shopping List
Developers require high levels of
environmental performance
What do we need in terms of research ?
To understand marine species interaction with
devices
Methods for detecting, identifying and analysing
these interactions in low light / high energy
environments
Slide 23 | © OpenHydro Group Limited 2009
Shopping List
What do we need in terms of research ?
Development of models to understand far field
effects in poorly understood tidal systems
Methods for determining noise profiles, sound
levels and effects
Improved levels of understanding of the baseline
environment in highly diverse tidal locations
Co-operation between research and developers
Meeting such as this !
