In the Netherlands, wind farms installed in the middle of the sea serve a different purpose: cultivating algae

For a couple of years now, the term has been known agrovoltaicsthat is, the shared use of the same land for solar panels and agricultural or livestock activities. But what if instead of land it was sea and between offshore wind turbines? This is the new idea of ​​an algae farm between an offshore wind farm in the Netherlands.

An algae farm? North Sea Farm 1 It will be the first algae farm between an offshore wind farm. This project developed by North Sea Farmers (NSF) and the Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) from the United Kingdom, and is expected to be operational by the end of this year. It also aims to be a business model reproducible for growing seaweed around the world. The aim will be to create a floating plantation between wind turbines where seaweed cultivation can be tested and improved for commercial purposes.

In the North Sea. Once installed, the algae farm will cover five hectares, and will be located in the wind farm of Hollandse Kust Zuid’ (HKZ)located about 18 kilometres off the coast of Scheveningen in the North Sea. This wind farm has 139 wind turbines and supplies electricity to more than 1.5 million households per year. The wind farm belongs to Vattenfall, BASF and Allianz.

Why algae? This aquatic plant has a wide variety of nutritional qualities that are widely used in pharmaceutical and cosmetic products, such as vitamin B12, iodine, zinc, magnesium and antioxidants, among other things. In addition, researchers want to demonstrate how the climate change crisis can be addressed through its cultivation, optimizing its function in capturing carbon dioxide (CO2). According to estimates by the studyIn twenty years, there will be more hectares of algae plantations, helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Financing. The project is funded by the Right Now Climate Fund from Amazon, which has donated 1.5 million euros for its placement and scientific research for one year to reduce CO2.

The production. The company’s aim is to increase local algae production to supply the European market, thereby developing an organised supply and, as the company points out, contributing to sustainability and the inclusion of nature in the sector. However, they point out that they still cannot answer certain questions about the ecological impacts and risks of these farms.

Image | Pixabay and Unsplash

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