Offshore wind can create a wilder future - if we learn from mistakes of the past

The scale of change ahead is huge. Globally, around 2,000GW of offshore wind capacity will need to be installed by 2050 to meet climate goals. That means thousands of new turbines every year and vast areas of ocean being transformed for energy generation. However, while the industrialisation of parts of our seas may be inevitable, the way it happens is not. 

At a time when marine ecosystems are already under immense pressure, offshore wind developments must be planned with nature and communities at their heart. The UK has lost up to 92% of its seagrass meadows and 95% of its native oyster reefs, while marine wildlife vertebrate populations have declined by more than half over the last 50 years. 

The recovery of these ecosystems is not only vital for wildlife, but for resilient coastal communities, sustainable fisheries, climate resilience and the long-term health of our seas. 

Decades of onshore renewable development shows how poorly planned projects, weak community benefit arrangements and lack of consideration from industry have often undermined public trust and limited positive outcomes. 

Offshore wind has a chance to set a new standard, as Kevin Cumming, Rewilding Director at Rewilding Britain, explains: ​“Britain is about to reshape vast areas of our seas. The question is whether offshore wind becomes another industrial revolution that extracts wealth from communities and nature, or the first that actively restores both.

“We have a unique opportunity to prove that clean energy, thriving coastal communities and healthy seas can go hand in hand. If we get this wrong, we risk industrialising our seas while aggravating the problems that have already pushed marine wildlife and many coastal communities into decline.”

The recently approved Berwick Bank development illustrates why a new approach is needed. The project has attracted significant opposition over its predicted impacts on internationally important seabird populations, with the development expected to kill over 4,000 birds including guillemots, gannets and kittiwakes in its first year alone. There are also concerns from local communities and fishers, as well potential negative consequences for tourism and local economies. 

At the same time, much of the economic value generated by offshore wind currently leaves Britain with only 30% of construction expenditure remaining within the UK. This is a missed opportunity for coastal communities that could benefit from jobs, skills and investment.

The decisions being made now will shape Britain’s seas for generations. 

While offshore wind developments can have significant ecological impacts, integrating marine restoration and rewilding into project design and planning from the outset could transform the sector into a catalyst for large-scale recovery of marine habitats and species, as well as coastal community regeneration.

As Kevin Cumming explains, ​“Government, industry, fisheries, coastal communities and marine restoration practitioners must work together to co-design a new approach to offshore wind development. One that delivers tangible benefits for people and nature alike — where clean energy supports ecological recovery, where marine restoration creates new jobs and new habitats and where coastal communities have a genuine stake in the future of their seas. We must make offshore wind part of the solution, not simply repeat the mistakes of the past.”

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