Reconciling offshore wind and biodiversity targets: Are we on track to realise the European Green Deal?

The EU Green Deal’s targets for biodiversity and offshore renewable energy are ambitious, multilayered and ultimately, connected. While offshore renewable energy is an important pillar to achieving the clean energy transition and climate goals in the EU, the effects (both positive and negative) on the ecosystem, and the species inhabiting it, cannot be ignored. In the workshop, the CrossGov project will explore how policy targets can be balanced at different management levels and what options policy makers have to expand offshore wind, while supporting biodiversity.

Objectives:  

• Share findings from the region on progress towards the EGD’s targets for biodiversity and renewable energy  
• Present findings on how countries in the North Sea region are integrating these targets into their national policy  
• Increase knowledge of good practice on coherent policy strategies to achieve biodiversity and renewable energy targets  
• Harness a greater understanding for the challenges and conflicts in implementing and designing coherent policy  

Participants will have a better understanding of the governance solutions being employed to balance offshore wind and biodiversity targets. Further, through discussions and an interactive exercise, participants will gain insights into the challenges and conflicts in implementing a coherent policy.

Additionally, action points for improving policy integration and coherence in the North Sea with regards to the biodiversity and offshore renewable energy targets will be derived from the workshop. These points will be integrated into the Arena Roadmap for the region.  

The workshop is relevant for national, regional and local policy stakeholders, sector representatives, NGOs, relevant scientific institutions, clusters, and EU project representatives.

The workshop will take place at the 3rd Mission Arena in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

About Mission Arena

The Blue Mission BANOS 3rd Mission Arena will inspire, engage and support a wide range of stakeholders across the North Sea in making the Blue Economy carbon-neutral & circular by 2030, in line with EU Mission Ocean’s objectives.   

Through a wide range of interactive sessions, workshops, pitching events, demonstrations and study visits, the 3rd Mission Arena will serve as a laboratory to (1) pave the way to innovative solutions, (2) showcase local, regional and national approaches to create a transition to a circular, carbon-neutral blue economy in the North Sea, and (3) provide concrete pathways to Mission Ocean’s success in the area.   

The 3rd Mission Arena will focus on the local and regional communities of Germany, Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands.