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German Scientists Use Offshore Wind Farms to Replenish Lobsters
German Scientists Use Offshore Wind Farms to Replenish Lobsters
By Stefan Nicola, Bloomberg
May 10, 2013
BERLIN -- German scientists are betting that offshore wind farms can help replenish the North Sea's fledgling lobster population.
Scientists from the Alfred-Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven will release 3,000 lobsters next year around the stone field section of the foundations of EWE AG’s 108-megawatt Riffgat project. The gaps between the rocks make for ideal lobster habitat, said Heinz-Dieter Franke, a biologist at the institute.
“The stone fields at the many offshore wind farms built in the German Bight offer a new chance to strengthen the lobster population,” Franke said in a phone interview. The 700,000 euro ($918,000) project is being financed by the state of Lower Saxony, he said.
Wind farm developers including EON SE and RWE AG (RWE) are beginning to face the same scrutiny as oil companies for projects in sensitive places. While programs to protect porpoises from offshore wind construction noises have added costs for developers, the farms can become a safe retreat for fish and crustaceans as commercial fishing isn’t allowed near them, Franke said.
About 80,000 lobsters were caught a year ...
By Stefan Nicola, Bloomberg
May 10, 2013
BERLIN -- German scientists are betting that offshore wind farms can help replenish the North Sea's fledgling lobster population.
Scientists from the Alfred-Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven will release 3,000 lobsters next year around the stone field section of the foundations of EWE AG’s 108-megawatt Riffgat project. The gaps between the rocks make for ideal lobster habitat, said Heinz-Dieter Franke, a biologist at the institute.
“The stone fields at the many offshore wind farms built in the German Bight offer a new chance to strengthen the lobster population,” Franke said in a phone interview. The 700,000 euro ($918,000) project is being financed by the state of Lower Saxony, he said.
Wind farm developers including EON SE and RWE AG (RWE) are beginning to face the same scrutiny as oil companies for projects in sensitive places. While programs to protect porpoises from offshore wind construction noises have added costs for developers, the farms can become a safe retreat for fish and crustaceans as commercial fishing isn’t allowed near them, Franke said.
About 80,000 lobsters were caught a year ...
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2013/05/german-scientists-use-offshore-wind-farms-to-replenish-lobsters?cmpid=WindNL-Thursday-May16-2013
3 replies
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= new reply since forum marked as read
Winner winner lobster dinner!
$300/lobster seems pretty high if they're just dropping them into the sea around the towers... but maybe they have divers going down and building little lobster condominiums. 
