a5a2cd0f-047c-4f22-975a-2e96ef6a3090 English series series 2026-01-05T16:10:51 MEDIN 3.1.2 biota Biodiversity indices SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary 2023-12-12 revision Engineering parameters SeaDataNet Parameter Discovery Vocabulary 2023-12-12 revision Energy resources GEMET - INSPIRE themes, version 1.0 2009-07-31 revision SeaVoX Vertical Co-ordinate Coverages 2020-05-21 revision bathybenthic 2025-06-15T23:00:00 2025-12-24T00:00:00 -10 5 49 60 TCE-4457 Marine Data Exchange 2025, Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, Marine Internships, Optimising Value of Scour and Cable Protection 2026-01-05T16:10:51 publication English This project was hosted by Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust with the help of the partner organisations, The Crown Estate, Ørsted and Natural England. One third of United Kingdom (UK) offshore wind farms (OWFs) will reach the end of their operational life by 2035, meaning that greater consideration must now be given to decommissioning. Concerns have been raised surrounding the feasibility of current decommissioning processes, particularly regarding the removal of scour and cable protection, and there remains a lack of a robust evidence base to guide best practice. Current policy expectations require full removal of scour and cable protection. However, there are growing calls for alternative approaches, including partial removal and full retention, which may deliver the greatest holistic value for both the environment and society. To explore this issue, the project adopted a stakeholder engagement approach involving developers, marine consultancies, conservation charities, and governmental bodies to investigate value creation opportunities. Stakeholder input revealed that the development of a more adaptable, context specific framework for decommissioning could potentially support equitable benefit sharing and biodiversity gains. However, the current rigidity of decommissioning frameworks and additional barriers deter innovative approaches from being realised. In response, this report provides a decommissioning decision tree framework considering the merits of different decommissioning approaches across different contexts. To ensure that the decision trees are applicable to real-world scenarios, key barriers have been identified, and recommendations have been put forward to address challenges. For decision trees to be ready for policy application, further research is required to explore how value creation options from alternative decommissioning options can be made viable. In addition, stakeholder collaboration is needed to establish common ground earlier in the leasing process. Overall, this report highlights how value creation opportunities could be supported and developed to become practical solutions. The Deliverables must be used in accordance with the Marine Data Exchange's Terms of Use otherRestrictions The Deliverables must be used in accordance with the Marine Data Exchange's Terms of Use otherRestrictions The Crown Estate +44 020 7851 5000 enquiries@thecrownestate.co.uk custodian Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust tsmalley@lincstrust.co.uk originator The Crown Estate +44 020 7851 5000 enquiries@thecrownestate.co.uk distributor Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust tsmalley@lincstrust.co.uk owner notPlanned Documents https://www.marinedataexchange.co.uk/details/TCE-4457/summary A link to the web service or dataset. https://www.marinedataexchange.co.uk A link to the general host site. Commission Regulation (EU) No 1089/2010 of 23 November 2010 implementing Directive 2007/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards interoperability of spatial data sets and services 2010-12-08T00:00:00 publication False series 3.1 Stakeholder Identification & Methods Prior to formal interviewing, a series of one-to-one conversations were held to identify relevant organisations and individuals for the interview stage. A range of organisations and roles were prioritised to ensure findings provided a rounded reflection of the current state of OWFs. During September 2025, a total of 11 virtual interviews with 17 participants were conducted across six organisations, including developers, regulators, environmental non-governmental organisations (NGOs), landowners and consultants. Certain organisations were interviewed multiple times; this was done to ensure representation of several key roles within these organisations. In some cases, organisations were contacted but declined to participate. Interviews were semi-structured, allowing for wider topics to be covered where relevant with questions provided in advance to allow participants time to prepare. The interviews were also automatically transcribed to promote open dialogue and enable accurate post-interview summaries, which were shared and approved (when requested) by respective organisations. To protect privacy, all responses have been anonymised. Some individuals were asked questions specific to their roles to gain detailed understanding of certain topics. Some responses have not been included in this report to respect anonymity or because they were deemed not relevant to the report’s scope. Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust tsmalley@lincstrust.co.uk pointOfContact EPSG Geodetic Parameter Registry 2022-11-29 revision WGS 84