Scottish Government commissioned ABPmer to improve models for assessing encounter risk between harbour seals and tidal turbines using the latest information on how harbour seals use potential tidal stream energy sites.

By 2020, the Scottish Government would like 100% of its electricity demand to be met from renewables by creating a balanced portfolio of both onshore and offshore technologies. Tidal stream energy has significant potential to contribute to this goal.

However there is currently considerable uncertainty regarding the potential for interactions between marine mammals and tidal turbines. This uncertainty is particularly concerning for harbour seals in the Orkney and North Coast management area, where the population has been undergoing a protracted decline. This has led to constraints being placed on tidal developments in this area until more information is available on the real risks presented to this species by tidal turbines.

The Scottish Government therefore commissioned ABPmer and SMRU Consulting to improve the existing models for assessing encounter risk between harbour seals and tidal turbines using the most up to date information on how harbour seals use potential tidal stream energy sites.

Building on work undertaken previously, the project reviewed the encounter risk process to determine areas where inputs could be refined to improve estimates in the short term. The study used the outputs of these reviews to generate an updated model fit for use in estimating encounter risk between seals and tidal turbines. The updated model was then applied to two tidal energy projects in the Pentland and Orkney Waters region.

The report and model will assist developers and regulators to ensure that the risks to harbour seals from encounters with tidal turbines are adequately assessed in order to ensure that tidal stream energy deployment is sustainable.

Download the report from the Scottish Government website.

^{Image courtesy Oceans Edge Photography}