Baker Consultants has won a contract with Iberdrola to provide an underwater noise and marine mammal activity monitoring service during the construction phase of the Wikinger offshore wind farm in the Baltic Sea.
Construction of the 70-turbine, 350MW Wikinger offshore wind farm will begin in March 2016. Once completed, the wind farm will generate enough electricity to power over 350,000 households, offsetting 600,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions every year.
Baker Consultants will monitor underwater noise emissions as well as the activity of harbour porpoises that may be present within and around the wind farm during piling operations, the company said.
In addition to the deployment of noise monitoring devices in the field during the foundation piling works, Baker Consultants will provide Iberdrola with consultancy services. This will include method statements, technical support to comply with the German regulatory authority’s (BSH) requirements and interpretation of the significant amount of data that will be collected.
Andrew Baker , Managing Director at Baker Consultants said: “Our unique skill-set and technical expertise in underwater noise monitoring, bioacoustics and marine mammal monitoring allow us to provide a comprehensive service to Iberdrola. We are able to generate robust results in line with underwater noise regulations and reduce costs through our use of technical innovation.”