Expansion of WREN – An International Collaborative Under International Energy Agency Wind

Land-based and offshore wind energy projects must address concerns of environmental effects if project permits are to be secured. While deployment thresholds have been established in many countries, access to information on... [ view full abstract ]

Land-based and offshore wind energy projects must address concerns of environmental effects if project permits are to be secured. While deployment thresholds have been established in many countries, access to information on efficient monitoring programs and effective mitigation strategies has been problematic. To address this challenge at an international level, the International Energy Agency (IEA) Wind supports Task 34, known as WREN (working together to resolve environmental effects of wind energy). Current members include France, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States. The objective of WREN is to facilitate international collaboration that advances the global understanding of environmental effects of land-based and offshore wind energy development. WREN is a shared global knowledge base and community of practice around research, monitoring and management of the environmental effects of wind energy development.
Membership in WREN has grown since the NWCC Research Meeting X. As a result of the ongoing interest in WREN, a task extension was recently approved by the IEA Wind Executive Committee allowing WREN to continue through September 2020. During Phase 1, two key products were developed: 1) WREN Hub, a database platform where all WREN-related information is located and 2) a white paper focused on adaptive management. This poster presentation will inform the audience about the activities that will be conducted during Phase 2, including expansion of WREN Hub; development of several white papers; continuation of the webinar series; and, outreach and engagement efforts. All these activities are aimed at contributing to supporting the expansion of land-based and offshore wind energy deployment.