Economic Impacts of Offshore Wind Farms on Fishing Industries: Perspectives, Methods, and Knowledge Gaps

Abstract

Offshore wind farms (OWFs) are rapidly developing as an alternative energy source globally and in the Greater Atlantic region of the United States. Despite the pace of development, there are still many uncertainties surrounding best practices in assessing the economic impacts of offshore wind on regional fishing industries. This work aims to provide an overview and assessment of industry perceptions, methods, results, and knowledge gaps pertaining to economic areas of concern related to interactions between OWFs and fishing industries in the region. We provide a compilation of studies focusing on industry perceptions and impacts of OWFs on the fishing industry, focusing on four key economic areas of interest: fuel expenditures; insurance costs; fishing industry revenues, income, and livelihoods; and fishing support businesses. Our findings suggest four overarching knowledge gap themes that persist across all economic areas of focus: (1) a lack of economic data or economically centered data collection efforts, (2) minimal works aiming to quantify the economic impacts of key areas of concern, (3) a lack of peer-reviewed models and methods in quantifying economic impacts, and (4) limited syntheses containing best practices or lessons learned associated with quantifying the comprehensive economic impacts posed by OWFs on fisheries. This article aims to build awareness in areas where interdisciplinary collaboration can take place as well as serve as a foundation for informing best practice guidance as it pertains to assessing economic impacts imposed by OWFs on the fishing industry.