Green energy solutions that deliver for both people and planet
Benj Sykes, Head of Environment, Consents & External Affairs
| Ørsted
The energy transition must be built responsibly and sustainably to succeed. Benj Sykes, UK country manager at Ørsted, hopes that through collaboration between the sector and the government, clear industry standards can be established for what ‘good’ looks like and how it can be measured
The climate and biodiversity crises are two urgent and deeply interconnected challenges that must be met swiftly and on a global scale.
As one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies, Ørsted believes that renewable energy lies at the intersection of these challenges.
If done right, the energy transition holds unique potential to serve as a force for good on both fronts, but it must be built responsibly and sustainably.
It is imperative that our green energy solutions contribute to ecosystem health while delivering positive community benefits, and that we can measure these impacts.
But we can’t do it alone. We’re advocating here in the UK and at global forums like COP16, the recent UN conference on biodiversity, to establish clear industry standards for what ‘good’ looks like.
Building in biodiversity
Restoring biodiversity is one of the most powerful tools we have to fight climate change, second only to transitioning to a fossil fuel-free world.
We’ve set an ambition that all new renewable energy assets we commission from 2030 onwards should have a net-positive biodiversity impact.
This means that we will not only avoid, minimise and compensate for any impact on nature during the lifetime of our projects − we’ll also actively help restore and enhance ecosystems.
“Restoring biodiversity is one of the most powerful tools we have to fight climate change”
Developing an impact measurement framework
Since making that pledge, we have been developing methods to fulfil our promise. We are creating frameworks and metrics to measure our actions and we are developing ways to deliver progress on a global scale.
We don’t have all the answers, but we are committed to finding lasting, scalable and sustainable solutions.
We’re working with The Biodiversity Consultancy to develop an impact measurement framework that allows for meaningfully and consistent measurement and reporting of biodiversity impacts across projects and markets.
The framework builds on the robust environmental measurement and monitoring we already do. It also gives us a method to check on the global programme of pilot projects we’ve already launched.
Wilder Humber
Here in the UK, we are collaborating with local experts on the Wilder Humber initiative to restore coastal ecosystems in the Humber Estuary − one of the most important natural features in the country.
Decades of pollution and commercial development have resulted in the severe decline of precious habitats and species in and along the Humber, such as sand dunes, salt marsh, seagrass and native oysters.
We have teamed up with Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust to restore seagrass and salt marsh and introduce half a million native oysters to improve the health and resilience of the estuary’s ecosystem.
This is one of many pilot projects we’re working on globally which will help inform what methods we can scale in a wide range of ecosystems to deliver on our 2030 ambition.
Leading the way from the UK
The UK has established itself as a world leader in offshore wind. Other markets around the world look to the UK as a template for how things should be done − not just in terms of scale and cost, but also in building offshore wind in the right way.
Working collaboratively with the UK government, environmental agencies, NGOs and local communities, we can achieve more, and do it faster.
Let’s work together to create a world that runs entirely on green energy and has a lasting positive impact on people and planet.
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