The Crown Estate plans to digitally map the seabed resource needed for future use

Therefore, The Crown Estate is building an integrated, spatial analysis platform which will consider: existing and future demands on the seabed out to 2050; geographical constraints for all key offshore sectors; existing infrastructure; and environmental designations and future resource requirements for environmental habitats and nature recovery.

Gus Jaspert, Managing Director, Marine, at The Crown Estate, said: “The seabed is facing a moment of transition with more demands on it than ever before, supporting natural habitats, vital industries including renewable energy, and playing an important role in energy security. As these demands intensify, a new, co-ordinated approach is needed to ensure we make the most of this vital resource for our country and for nature. We’re stepping up to help meet this challenge; combining our spatial mapping expertise, our cross-sector overview of seabed demands, and new digital capabilities and inputs from our partners to deliver the most sophisticated digital scenario-mapping exercise in our history. The results will act as a guiding light to inform a joint plan for how we, with our partners, can orchestrate the jigsaw of competing seabed demands and unlock the seabed’s potential to support vital industries, net zero and nature recovery for the long-term.” 

Work is expected to complete in 2025, and the live platform will be continuously updated to reflect any new information and evidence. The UK wants to include marine planning bodies from Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and sector decision-making organisations discussing how the outputs of this programme, and insights from across the sector, can be used to develop a long-term mechanism for coordinated action over the seabed, and how it can continue to play a critical role in delivering net zero and marine nature recovery.