Life is teeming in offshore wind farms, as numerous studies demonstrate. Firstly, this is because they provide a solid substrate that is otherwise scarce in the rest of the North Sea – the ‘reef effect’. Secondly, the wind farms form a sanctuary and thus act similarly to a ‘no-take’ zone, the highest conservation class in marine protected areas. Because more fish grow there than space allows, fishing grounds along their boundaries also benefit from the spillover. An ambitious target is to designate 30% of the oceans as such protected areas by 2030 – a goal from which we are light years away.
Last Thursday, the ‘Zukunftskommission Fischerei’ (Future Commission on Fisheries), established by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture, presented its proposals for the German North Sea to a panel of experts: they argued that too much area is being lost to fisheries due to offshore wind farms. Therefore, future planning must consider how (passive) fishing and aquaculture could be integrated into wind farms, such as set nets, fish traps, and pots.
To date, all fishing is prohibited between the wind turbines. This is for safety reasons: energy supply from offshore sources is a declared objective of national security, a role that is likely to grow rather than diminish in the future, according to Prof. Huck from the University of Bonn during the expert panel. For wind farm operators, the exclusion of fisheries is conveniently recognised as a compensatory measure for the environmental impact.
The association of wind farm operators showed willingness to engage in dialogue, even though significant doubts remain regarding the legal and technical feasibility of fishing and aquaculture within offshore wind farms. Furthermore, the association emphasised that the wind farms could become sanctuaries for endangered species. Wind farms and their operators may well be our strongest allies in achieving the "30 by 30" target and protecting our oceans…
Sources:
Knorrn et al. (2024): Beneath the blades: Marine wind farms support parts of local biodiversity - a systematic review. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.173241
Taz (09.04.2025): Fischen in Offshore-Windparks soll aus der Krise helfen (Fischerei-Kommission macht Vorschlag: Fischen in Offshore-Windparks soll aus der Krise helfen | taz.de)
