MultiSector Ocean Use: Traditional and Alternative Energy

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Multi-Sector Ocean Use Traditional and
Alternative Energy

• MAFAC Meeting
• May 13, 2009
• Monterey, CA
• Tom Bigford
• NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service

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• NOAA has an important energy role
• Understanding and predicting changes to Earths
  environment
• Products and services
• Statutory authority for OTEC licensing
• Marine environment stewardship and trustee
  responsibilities
• Increased role as traditional energy sectors
  expand and marine renewables evolve
• Working with industry and others to move forward

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NOAAs Engagement in Energy

• Lubchenco interest
• NOAA Ocean Council priority
• NOAA Energy Team
• NMFS Information Exchange

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MAFACs Engagement in Energy?

• Fisheries (economic impacts)
• Spatial displacement (de facto MPAs,
  navigational)
• Gear modifications
• Habitat
• Site-specific effects
• Multi-array and ecosystem effects
• Protected Resources
• Entanglement
• Other takings

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NOAAs Statutory Responsibilities for Energy
Issues

• Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
  Management Act
• Endangered Species Act
• Marine Mammal Protection Act
• National Environmental Policy Act
• Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act
• National Marine Sanctuaries Act
• Coastal Zone Management Act
• Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Act
• The Federal Power Act
• Oil Pollution Act of 1990
• Deepwater Ports Act

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Energy Issues by Sector

• TRADITIONAL
• Oil and Gas
• Liquefied Natural Gas
• Hydropower
• Nuclear Power

• ALTERNATIVE
• Offshore Wind
• Hydrokinetic (Ocean Current, Tidal, Wave, and
  In-Stream)
• Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion

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Traditional Energy Sectors

• Offshore Oil and Gas
• Liquefied Natural Gas
• Hydropower
• Nuclear Power

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Alternative Energy Technology Characteristics

• Multitude of individual generating units
• Expansive spatial footprint
• Significant engineering challenges
• Uncertainties regarding impacts
• Siting criteria and operating parameters
• Environmental data collection/in-water testing
• Shallow capitalization slow maturation
• Balancing promotion and precaution
• Adaptive Management

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Offshore Wind Energy

• More than 900,000 MW of potential wind energy
  exist off the U.S. coast more than half of this
  is in the North Atlantic.
• Currently no commercial wind facilities operating
  on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf, but
  proposals are being discussed. NOAA provides
  consultations on the impacts of any proposals on
  agency trust resources.

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Hydrokinetic Energy

• Electricity from waves, tides, and currents in
  oceans, estuaries, and tidal areas free flowing
  water in rivers, lakes and streams free flowing
  water in man-made channels

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Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion

• Potential NOAA concerns
• Entrainment and impingement
• Effects of localized temperature changes
• Increased nutrients in surface waters

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Pilot Hydrokinetic RD

• Baseline information ecological, socio-economic,
  historic-cultural, aesthetic
• Pilot project monitoring installation, operation
  and maintenance, decommissioning and removal
• Bioengineering designing prototypes to prevent
  or reduce adverse ecological effects
• Model development extrapolation
  of individual impacts to commercial
  levels assessing cumulative impacts
• Fish Passage in the ocean

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Commercial Hydrokinetic RD

• Expanded project monitoring refining siting
  criteria, sensitive area closures
• Continued bioengineering adjusting technology
  capabilities and operating parameters to
  individual species characteristics
• Multiple-array and ecosystem-level
  impact modeling
• Information exchange (repository/clearinghouse
  )
• Independent research capacity

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Challenges

• Difficulty in balancing multiple uses of the
  marine environment
• Scientific uncertainty and lack of information
  associated with direct and cumulative impacts
• New forms of collaboration with outside partners
  needed
• Energy issues represent a
  substantial workload for
  NOAA staff, as traditional
  sectors expand and new
  sectors evolve

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Opportunities

• Working with new energy sectors industry
  inviting NOAA participation
• NOAA data and data collection expertise can
  assist the design of new technologies
• Rare opportunity to avoid and
  mitigate impacts at early stages
• Input into the design of new
  regulatory processes

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Evolving Regulatory and Legislative Framework

• FERC
• MMS
• FERC and MMS MOU
• Legislation

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Considerations

• Two-stage pilot process
• Sensitive area designations
• Thresholds for permits
• Strict performance targets
• Limited access
• Permit/license moratoria
• Monitoring protocols
• Adaptive management metrics

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Considerations for MAFAC

• Competing Uses
• Marine Spatial Planning
• Get involved
• Stakeholder meetings
• Agency briefings
• State/Federal workshops