Page 22: of Marine Technology Magazine (March 2019)

Insignts Decommissioning

A program to help understand how offshore platforms and structures impact

North Sea marine life – and therefore make more informed decisions on what to do with them at the end of their useful life – is hopping to address some of the questions.

The Insite Program (standing for IN- ? uence of man-made Structures In The

Ecosystem) initially ran from 2015- 2017. Now, a second, ? ve-year-long

Simulations run by the IN- phase has started, thanks to some £7.6

SITE Phase 1 project “AN- million funding; £5 million from the

Chor” show the oceanic

UK’s Natural Environment Research pathways that protected

Council, £2 million from the offshore in- corals of Lophelia pertusa dustry and £600,000 from the Centre for from the Thistle A and the

Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture (now derogated) Murchi-

Science. son platforms may follow,

Richard Heard, Insite Program direc- including some of which tor, told the Offshore Decommissioning end up settling in Norway’s

Conference in St Andrews, late 2018:

Aktivneset marine protect- “This is about providing science for ed area. Image from the all stakeholders to try and understand

INSITE Phase 1 ANChor what’s going on in the eco-system, so project.

that we are informed and can make bet-

Decommissioned structures in the North Sea reveal dense coverage of the protected species of stony coral Lophelia pertusa.

Image: Insite

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