Shining a light on subsea ecological innovations at the Global Offshore Wind event in Manchester, PES Wind’s Stefann Perrigot met with Stephen Kane, Managing Director at Ridgeway Rockbags, to discover how modern scour protection actively restores marine habitats.
Kane discussed the company's Filter Unit rock bags (FURBs), an eco-friendly alternative to traditional concrete mattresses or rock dumping. Designed as a flexible, non-toxic mesh solution, these rock bags provide exceptional scour protection around offshore wind foundations while creating a safe, stabilizing environment for marine life to thrive.
Field research with EDF showed a 40% increase in species richness around the rock bags. This included a 2.2-times increase in the cod family, a three-times increase in lobsters, and a tenfold increase in edible crabs. Kane highlighted that these engineered solutions prove offshore wind farms and commercial fisheries can successfully coexist while actively restoring degraded subsea ecosystems.
For more information about Ridgeway Rockbags, visit their website: https://rockbags.com/