EU Climate Goals May Conflict with Nature Conservation

The accelerated installation of offshore wind farms in the European Union opens a ‘green dilemma as climate protection may conflict with nature conservation, warned the European Court of Auditors (ECA).

To mitigate climate change, the EU has invested nearly 17 billion euros in the ‘blue’ energy sector over the past 15 years, the ECA states in a report published on Monday.

– The Russian invasion of Ukraine has highlighted the importance of the EU’s energy independence, and our seas may be part of the solution. However, the EU should not strive for a blue revolution at any cost: renewable sources at sea must not significantly harm society or the environment, said auditor Nikolaos Milionis.

The European Commission has not sufficiently considered the environmental impact so far, auditors warn, emphasizing that the installation of new offshore wind farms ‘could be harmful to the marine environment, both at the surface and underwater.’

There are also largely unresolved conflicts with the fishing sector and only rare instances of cooperation among EU countries sharing the sea on joint projects.

– This results in missed opportunities for more efficient use of marine space, the ECA highlights in the report.

Expanding capacity for electricity production at sea could, however, be slowed down by risks in the supply of key raw materials, which currently come almost exclusively from China, they note, warning that procurement is also threatened by current geopolitical tensions.

They called on the European Commission to better study the impact of wind farms on marine ecosystems, biodiversity, and coastal communities, to better utilize space and support new technologies for energy production at sea.