The Multiple Benefits of a Wind Farm
Morten Stilling shares a company post that explains how a wind farm can harvest renewable energy and food, capture carbon and clean the ocean all at once.
OX2 plans to build the offshore wind park Galatea-Galene outside of Falkenberg on the West Coast of Sweden. When planning the wind farm the company looked at using the area in more ways. OX2 teamed up with Kobb, a company that grows and sells seaweed. And the advantages of combining wind power and growing seaweed just keep unfolding.
Seaweed only needs saltwater and sunlight to grow, and it grows quickly. The ropes with the plants are laid out in the sea in October and harvested in April. In six months, the seaweed has grown to about two meters.
“The seaweed grows under the harshest time of the year, but Kattegat is rather mild compared to many other seas”, says Nils Mårtensson at Kobb.
He knows what he is talking about. He used to work with rigs and floated platforms for the oil and gas industry in the North Sea.
Seaweed has been labeled a “super food”. It is rich in minerals, fiber and antioxidants. It also contains Omega-3 and is anti-inflammatory. But the seaweed also has environmental effects. When it grows it captures CO2 and absorbs phosphor and nitrogen, helping the sea to recover from overfertilization.
It’s not only people’s health that can improve. The anti-inflammatory quality of the seaweed makes it suitable for fodder, thereby reducing the Methane from cows or other livestock. Methane is about 60 times as potent greenhouse gas as CO2.
“It is good to know we are doing good for people and the sea. The seabed here is more or less dead as a result the eutrophication. And, of course, I enjoy seaweed. It is really tasty!”, says Nils Mårtensson.
The wind farm Galatea-Galene would contribute about 6-7 TWh of emissions-free electricity to the part of Sweden that needs it the most. OX2 has also set the goal that all their wind and solar farms should be nature positive.
“This is a step towards that goal. But it is also a way to create job opportunities and create social benefits of the wind farm”, says Emelie Zakrisson, Head of Offshore development Sweden, OX2.
Key points include:
- The seaweed market
- Social benefits
- Job opportunities
Read the full article, Can a wind farm harvest renewable energy and food, capture carbon and clean the ocean all at once – yes, it can, on Ox2.com.
