The offshore power trade is launching a brand new Offshore Nesting Bird Census (ONBC) to higher perceive how endangered sea birds use oil and fuel platforms for nesting and rearing chicks.
The intention is to achieve perception into geographic distribution of those unconventional breeding websites and the way they’re used, so new knowledge and data could be shared.
The census which has been created by Dr MacNeill Ferguson an ecological specialist from power consultants Xodus, will take place in June 2024. Subsequent annual surveys will present long-term knowledge highlighting the extent to which birds are nesting offshore.
The initiative has been welcomed by the trade and is supported by the federal government’s Joint Nature Conservation Committee.
Existing UK knowledge has highlighted the prevalence of kittiwakes nesting on platforms within the Southern North Sea, the world between Norfolk and the coast of Holland. However, different data have proven them nesting on platforms elsewhere off UK coasts.
The inhabitants of those distinctive small gulls has declined by 40% in recent years, and they’re now on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature purple checklist that means they’re prone to international extinction.
There is comparable concern about razorbills, guillemots, herring gulls and even carrion crows that are additionally recognized to make use of offshore power platforms to nest.
Much of the North Sea’s oil and fuel infrastructure is now being decommissioned and dismantled as UK fossil gasoline sources decline. Operators are legally obliged to keep away from disturbance to nesting birds throughout this course of and knowledge from the survey will assist inform determination making throughout decommissioning by offering updated data in addition to a novel scientific knowledge supply on sea chicken behaviour.
It is hoped that each one 24 Southern North Sea platform operators will participate.
Caroline Brown, Offshore Energies atmosphere supervisor, mentioned: “We are delighted to be involved in the ONBC, which we hope will become an annual exercise. Some UK seabirds are facing a significant decline in numbers, and it is vital to have a better understanding of their nesting behaviour in order to help protect them. We are confident the aims of this important survey will appeal to our offshore workforce and have a significant value to scientists.”
Dr MacNeill Ferguson, Ecological Specialist at Xodus mentioned: “There is a real opportunity here for operators to work collaboratively on a project. Sharing ecological data aids planning and benefits the environment through ecologically coherent decision making. It also provides an opportunity for operators who protect and monitor the birds to record a biodiversity net gain from their presence in the North Sea.”
There will likely be a brief Q&A session the place Dr MacNeill Ferguson (Xodus) will likely be answering questions in regards to the census, the way it works and what the targets are. This is a dwell interactive session and is open to all. It will likely be held on eighth May 2024 12:00 – 12:45 in collaboration with the E-Reps Network. Join the guestlist – Get Involved: Offshore Bird Nesting Census Kick Off Q&A – Zoom, Wed 8 May 2024 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM (tickettailor.com)
To help all operators within the participation of this initiative, OEUK are additionally internet hosting an Xodus led coaching workshop on the thirtieth May 2024 10:00 – 12:00, to offer some key abilities in efficient identification of nesting birds sometimes seen offshore. This session will embrace a quick introduction to seabird ID, a abstract of how birds utilise offshore platforms and a information on the right way to assess nesting behaviour and/or nest standing. This will furnish observers with the instruments they should confidently contribute to the ONBC 2024. Please register your curiosity right here
Read the latest difficulty of the OGV Energy journal HERE
Published: 02-05-2024
