The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) has appealed to UK government to extend its support for renewable energy projects, particularly deep water renewable technologies like floating wind farms.

The charity is of the opinion that floating wind farms will be ideal in harnessing stronger winds which can be hard to obtain in shallow water, where offshore wind projects are presently being built.

This move, could increase energy productivity substantially, the RSPB said.

It added that encouraging and offering financial support to offshore and deep water renewable sources of energy has its own advantages for lowered risk for marine wildlife and also for protected seabirds.

The UK government is also urged to invest more in understanding the impact of floating wind technology and develop plans to overcome barriers that stop the technology from being deployed on a commercial scale by the mid 2020s.

The government has put up a consultation which will close on the opinions of whether or not the government should financially support renewable energy sources, which are due to be developed between 2020 and 2026.

It had recently stopped supporting onshore wind and solar projects, but hinted that it will still support offshore and other technologies that are ‘less established’.

The charity organisation welcomed this move and said that it will support renewable energy projects and proposals that would not interfere with wild life and noted that in the past, it supported 90% of the projects.

Recently, the organisation published a report, the RSPB’s 2050 Energy Vision, where it envisioned on how the country can forge ahead in renewable energy and deliver climate targets. The report also talked about the importance of onshore wind and solar energy and plans to reduce energy demand in the future.

RSPB senior policy officer, Melanie Coath said: “The RSPB is clear that continued Government support for carefully-planned renewable energy into the 2020s is critical to the UK’s long-term energy strategy.

“There is also an exciting opportunity to be at the forefront of innovative technologies like floating wind turbines, if we seize the opportunity now, and make sure we invest in understanding the impacts of those technologies so they can be rolled out in harmony with nature.”

Image: UK government urged by RSPB to revive support for renewable energy projects. Photo: Courtesy of Andy Hay.