Application of Marine Spatial Planning tools for tidal stream farm micro-siting
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Accepted version
Date
2022-02-11
Authors
Álvarez, M.
Ramos, V.
Carballo, R.
López, I.
Fouz, D. M.
Iglesias, Gregorio
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier
Published Version
Abstract
The operation of tidal stream energy farms may interfere with other uses of the marine space, especially in depth-limited areas (estuaries, rivers, etc.) which are typically subject to multiple demands of use. The Marine Spatial Planning Directive (MSP) was passed by the European Commission in 2014 to ensure a harmonic coexistence between different maritime activities and to protect the marine environment. In this context, the objective of this work is to present a methodology based on MSP tools for tidal-farm siting in depth-limited areas. The methodology is illustrated through a case study: Ria de Ribadeo, a shallow-water estuary in NW Spain. Having considered a number of uses (archaeological, biodiversity, fishing, aquaculture, recreational and navigation), two exploitable tidal farm sites (Areas A and C) with annual energy densities of 1 were found. The estuary is periodically dredged to maintain navigation. Dredging-related risks were analysed using a novel indicator, the Dredging Associated Risk (DAR), based on which Area C was discarded and Area A had its exploitable surface area reduced by 25%. In sum, the methodology proposed was proven to be effective for tidal stream farm planning.
Description
Keywords
Depth-limited tidal sites , Dredging Associated Risk (DAR) , Good Environmental Status (GES) , Maritime planning system , Ria de ribadeo
Citation
Álvarez, M., Ramos, V., Carballo,R., López, I., Fouz, D. M. and Iglesias, G. (2022) 'Application of Marine Spatial Planning tools for tidal stream farm micro-siting'. Ocean & Coastal Management, 220, 106063 (14 pp). doi: 10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2022.106063