Marine-i has announced it is helping Research Development UK (RDUK) establish a marine acoustic monitoring service for the emerging Celtic Sea Floating Offshore Wind (FLOW) opportunity, to aid deployment strategies in these areas.

Part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund, Marine-i is designed to help the marine technology sector in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly grow through harnessing the full potential of R&D.

RDUK gathers data from inshore and offshore waters to better understand the effect of increasing human commercial and leisure activity. One of the key technologies that RDUK uses is the LoRaWAN network, as its director, Joe Dennett, explained: “LoRaWAN is short for Long Range Wide Area Network. It is a wireless technology that uses VHF to send data from multiple sensors at sea back to shore, which is then made available on the internet in close to real time.”

Meg Hayward Smith, Marine Scientist for RDUK, added: “Using LoRaWAN alongside a data buoy, we will be developing marine mammal acoustic monitoring around the South West coast and beyond. We send back live cetacean data from our coastal waters or even more remote offshore locations, to improve current data sets and knowledge. This allows us to support work on renewable energy innovation, helping improve mitigation and protection of cetaceans.”

RDUK engaged with Marine-i to gain RD&I support for a new project that would take its pioneering work to the next level. The comprehensive programme will provide vital guidance to RDUK on a number of key project issues, detailing the infrastructure and feasibility of the LoRaWAN Marine Monitoring Network, detailing the key FLOW Development Areas, and identifying the underlying environmental data and acoustic monitoring needs over the FLOW lifecycle.

Mr Dennett added: “Having access to the expert team at Marine-i has been a massive boost for our project. It is critical that we develop our understanding of how human activities are impacting upon our oceans and marine life. Marine-i is helping us to advance that important work into new areas.”

Professor Lars Johanning, Marine-i programme director, said: “It is great to see this pioneering innovation being developed in Cornwall. RDUK have a clear vision of what they want to deliver with this technology, and Marine-i’s support is helping them to achieve their goals at a faster pace than might otherwise be possible. Their solutions could have worldwide applications for improving the effectiveness of marine monitoring.”