Amazon Europe is investing heavily in the world’s first commercial-scale algae farm nestled between offshore wind turbines.
The project, named North Sea Farm 1, will be located on a wind farm off the coast of the Netherlands. Their goal is to test and improve carbon sequestration methods using algae. By locating the farm in a hitherto empty space between the turbines, the project can expand seaweed farming in the otherwise heavily exploited North Sea.
The project is run by the nonprofit North Sea Farmers (NSF) and is expected to go live later this year. Additionally, it is managed by a consortium of research scientists and algae industry partners.
Amazon is granting 1.5 million euros to create this algae farm and conduct a year of scientific research on reducing carbon by growing algae. The funding comes from its $100 million Right Now Climate Global Fund, Amazon’s commitment to supporting nature-based solutions, which adds to the work the company is doing to decarbonize its operations.
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North Sea Farm 1
It will consist of a 10 hectare seaweed farm, which should produce at least 6,000 kg of fresh seaweed in the first year.
The recent funding will also help North Sea Farmers analyze and improve the farm’s production capacity.
At the same time, researchers investigate the potential of algae farms to remove carbon from the atmospheremodeling the impacts of large-scale algae cultivation.
Algae could be a key tool for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, but they are currently cultivated on a relatively small scale in Europe. We are delighted to fund this project to help us better understand its potential to help fight climate change.
Zak Watts, Director of European Sustainability at Amazon.
Algae have great potential to help fight climate change by absorbing CO2 as they grow and could enhance biodiversity. Placing algae farms between offshore wind turbines takes advantage of untapped space to capture carbon.
If it grows, Europe’s seaweed industry can reduce CO2 by millions of tonnes per year by 2040.
Algae can also be used to make packaging, food, and clothing.
Via www.aboutamazon.eu
