Workshop to scope for Harmonized Regional Monitoring Schemes to Assess the Impact of Offshore Wind Farms on Fish, Pelagic and Benthic Communities and Ecosystem Functions (WKOMO)

Understanding the ecological impacts of offshore wind farms (OWFs) is hindered by a lack of harmonised monitoring data, despite the growing demand for coordinated assessments across countries. The Workshop to scope for Harmonized Regional Monitoring Schemes to Assess the Impact of Offshore Wind Farms on Fish, Pelagic and Benthic Communities and Ecosystem Functions (WKOMO) reviewed national monitoring efforts, collected meta data information on national monitoring activities and recommended steps toward a unified regional framework focused on OWF impacts on marine ecosystems, especially during the operational phase. Results showed that OWF monitoring varies widely across countries in context, focus, and data quality, with most efforts centred on individual wind farms and primarily targeting fish and invertebrates, while key infrastructure and ecosystem functions remain underrepresented. Spatial and taxonomic biases, along with inconsistent documentation and data centralization, hinder comprehensive assessments, although some high-confidence data exist in well-monitored regions like the North Sea. Case studies from multiple countries highlight both ecological benefits (e.g., habitat creation, biodiversity increase) and challenges (e.g., non-native species spread, hydrodynamic changes), underscoring the need for long-term, harmonized, and multidisciplinary monitoring to fully understand OWF impacts.