Energy
North Sea oil and gas extraction peaked several years ago and is now beginning to decline. Fossil Fuels were first discovered here in 1851. Large Scale extraction began in the 1960s.
As the oil reserves in the North Sea are declining, we are beginning to see renewable energy take over in the form of offshore windfarms with several large round three proposals proposed within the English North Sea.
A study carried out by the government and industry has estimated that North Sea wind and wave resources have the potential to generate the equivalent in electricity to the 1bn barrels of oil being produced annually offshore. Other projects would see wind, wave and tidal power generating plants in different North Sea states link up by undersea cables to compensate for the irregular nature of the energy generation.
Government targets aim for Britain to increase its use of renewable energy from 1.5% to 15% by 2020. This would require the construction of 7000 turbines, 3000 of which would likely be located offshore.
To find out more about Marine Planning within the North Sea click here or visit www.wildlifetrusts.org
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