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Monetized (socio-)environmental handprint and footprint of an offshore windfarm in the Belgian Continental Shelf : an assessment of local, regional and global impacts

(2024) APPLIED ENERGY. 353(part A).
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Abstract
Renewable offshore wind electricity is as one of the major renewable energy sources on our path towards carbon neutrality. As for all energy technologies, offshore wind farms (OWFs) will have both local and global negative and positive impacts. Understanding and quantifying these burdens and benefits requires a holistic sustainability assessment. This study tests and applies a novel (socio-) environmental impact assessment framework to quantify the monetized (socio-) environmental footprint and handprint of an offshore wind farm located in the Belgian Continental Shelf. This framework consists of a combination of two ways of integrating Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Ecosystem Services Assessment (ESA) to quantify both the site-specific and site-generic impacts on ecosystem services (ESs) over the lifetime of a human intervention. For the operation and maintenance stage of the OWF, impacts on three local ESs were quantified, i.e. offshore wind energy provisioning, nursery and habitat maintenance and aesthetic value, while for the other life cycle stages site-generic impacts on multiple ESs were calculated. A comprehensive list of data was inventoried to conduct both the LCA and ESA studies. The monetized impact results were then aggregated and monetized at the level of three areas of protection, i.e. human health and well-being, natural resources and ecosystem quality. The results show that the OWF has a net handprint of +€85,196, mainly due to electricity production, while the absolute footprint (- €4039) consists largely of impacts associated to the supply chain of materials to manufacture the offshore windfarm. Furthermore, this study compares the (socio-) environmental performance of an OWF with nuclear energy, which is used as benchmark because of its high importance for electricity supply in Belgium. This study is a first step towards a valuable contribution to understanding the multi-scale burdens and benefits of offshore wind energy, which can support decision- and policy-making.
Keywords
(socio-) environmental impact assessment, Footprint, Handprint, Life cycle assessment, Ecosystem services, Offshore wind energy, LIFE-CYCLE ASSESSMENT, ECOSYSTEM SERVICES, THERMAL POLLUTION, ENERGY-SYSTEMS, VISUAL IMPACT, GAS EMISSIONS, FARMS, BIODIVERSITY, POWER, FRAMEWORK

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MLA
De Luca Peña, Laura Vittoria, et al. “Monetized (Socio-)Environmental Handprint and Footprint of an Offshore Windfarm in the Belgian Continental Shelf : An Assessment of Local, Regional and Global Impacts.” APPLIED ENERGY, vol. 353, no. part A, 2024, doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.122123.
APA
De Luca Peña, L. V., Taelman, S. E., Bas, B., Staes, J., Mertens, J., Clavreul, J., … Dewulf, J. (2024). Monetized (socio-)environmental handprint and footprint of an offshore windfarm in the Belgian Continental Shelf : an assessment of local, regional and global impacts. APPLIED ENERGY, 353(part A). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.122123
Chicago author-date
De Luca Peña, Laura Vittoria, Sue Ellen Taelman, Bilge Bas, Jan Staes, Jan Mertens, Julie Clavreul, Nils Préat, and Jo Dewulf. 2024. “Monetized (Socio-)Environmental Handprint and Footprint of an Offshore Windfarm in the Belgian Continental Shelf : An Assessment of Local, Regional and Global Impacts.” APPLIED ENERGY 353 (part A). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.122123.
Chicago author-date (all authors)
De Luca Peña, Laura Vittoria, Sue Ellen Taelman, Bilge Bas, Jan Staes, Jan Mertens, Julie Clavreul, Nils Préat, and Jo Dewulf. 2024. “Monetized (Socio-)Environmental Handprint and Footprint of an Offshore Windfarm in the Belgian Continental Shelf : An Assessment of Local, Regional and Global Impacts.” APPLIED ENERGY 353 (part A). doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.122123.
Vancouver
1.
De Luca Peña LV, Taelman SE, Bas B, Staes J, Mertens J, Clavreul J, et al. Monetized (socio-)environmental handprint and footprint of an offshore windfarm in the Belgian Continental Shelf : an assessment of local, regional and global impacts. APPLIED ENERGY. 2024;353(part A).
IEEE
[1]
L. V. De Luca Peña et al., “Monetized (socio-)environmental handprint and footprint of an offshore windfarm in the Belgian Continental Shelf : an assessment of local, regional and global impacts,” APPLIED ENERGY, vol. 353, no. part A, 2024.
@article{01HDDR68FFE504APNTHH4BFZ9C,
  abstract     = {{Renewable offshore wind electricity is as one of the major renewable energy sources on our path towards carbon neutrality. As for all energy technologies, offshore wind farms (OWFs) will have both local and global negative and positive impacts. Understanding and quantifying these burdens and benefits requires a holistic sustainability assessment. This study tests and applies a novel (socio-) environmental impact assessment framework to quantify the monetized (socio-) environmental footprint and handprint of an offshore wind farm located in the Belgian Continental Shelf. This framework consists of a combination of two ways of integrating Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Ecosystem Services Assessment (ESA) to quantify both the site-specific and site-generic impacts on ecosystem services (ESs) over the lifetime of a human intervention. For the operation and maintenance stage of the OWF, impacts on three local ESs were quantified, i.e. offshore wind energy provisioning, nursery and habitat maintenance and aesthetic value, while for the other life cycle stages site-generic impacts on multiple ESs were calculated. A comprehensive list of data was inventoried to conduct both the LCA and ESA studies. The monetized impact results were then aggregated and monetized at the level of three areas of protection, i.e. human health and well-being, natural resources and ecosystem quality. The results show that the OWF has a net handprint of +€85,196, mainly due to electricity production, while the absolute footprint (- €4039) consists largely of impacts associated to the supply chain of materials to manufacture the offshore windfarm. Furthermore, this study compares the (socio-) environmental performance of an OWF with nuclear energy, which is used as benchmark because of its high importance for electricity supply in Belgium. This study is a first step towards a valuable contribution to understanding the multi-scale burdens and benefits of offshore wind energy, which can support decision- and policy-making.}},
  articleno    = {{122123}},
  author       = {{De Luca Peña, Laura Vittoria and Taelman, Sue Ellen and Bas, Bilge and Staes, Jan and Mertens, Jan and Clavreul, Julie and Préat, Nils and Dewulf, Jo}},
  issn         = {{0306-2619}},
  journal      = {{APPLIED ENERGY}},
  keywords     = {{(socio-) environmental impact assessment,Footprint,Handprint,Life cycle assessment,Ecosystem services,Offshore wind energy,LIFE-CYCLE ASSESSMENT,ECOSYSTEM SERVICES,THERMAL POLLUTION,ENERGY-SYSTEMS,VISUAL IMPACT,GAS EMISSIONS,FARMS,BIODIVERSITY,POWER,FRAMEWORK}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{part A}},
  pages        = {{20}},
  title        = {{Monetized (socio-)environmental handprint and footprint of an offshore windfarm in the Belgian Continental Shelf : an assessment of local, regional and global impacts}},
  url          = {{http://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.122123}},
  volume       = {{353}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}

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