A community group of stakeholders, Blue Horizon, is calling for all offshore wind projects to located at 22 km from the Waterford coast line.
According to Ocean Focus, this would follow the EU approach where the average ‘bottom fixed’ site is 59km from shore in an average water depth of 33 metres.
Blue Horizon says ‘yes’ to offshore wind but ‘no’ to nearshore wind, and is calling for a 22km wind turbine free zone of the Waterford coast in alignment with ‘EU best practices to protect biodiversity, the local fishing economy, the stunning seascapes and the tourism industry’.
The Waterford coast has several Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas under EU law, along with the Copper Coast UNESCO Geopark.
Some of the largest offshore wind farms ‘on the planet’ are planned for the Waterford coast, according to Blue Horizon.
These include: SSE Celtic Sea (25km); ESB Equinor, Helvick (10km); DP Energy, Inis Ealga (8.5km); Energia, Helvick Head (5km).
For more on the EU versus Waterford, click here.